《The Last Obligate Of A Self-Ordained Sorcerer》


 Ch 00 - Prelude

    The Last Obligate Of A


    Self-Ordained Sorcerer


    <h2 style="text-align: center">( L.O.S.O.S. )</h2>


    Chapter 00


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Prelude</h2>


    Spacetime is a funny thing, it¡¯s here, it¡¯s there, it¡¯s absolutely nowhere. Yet somewhere, sometime, on that intangible construct lies a point, a moment of significance if you will. Far past the ¡®Gnab Gib¡¯ of the great donut (a term coined by an Earth-form of great significance) lies the last cosmic fusion reactor left in existence, and around it, the death throes of sentience itself.


    As most other times are irrelevant in such circumstances, we shall have to adopt local customs of our specimen. Around this last solar remnant were three planets, none of which were native to their orbits, and aboard them were the scavenging vestiges of a once galaxy-spanning civilization.


    Seven of their artificial ¡®suns¡¯ prior, they had come together under a banner of resistance, a consortium of fools hell-bent on destroying the only enemy that truly mattered, or rather didn¡¯t, Entropy.


    Above all terrors is the puppeteer of icy claws and inarguable actions, or, through the devil of innocent fear, the root of all life¡¯s evils, Scarcity. A hand felt by all, be it through food and famine, or the even more fundamental equation, the energy required for the universe to sustain the concept of matter itself.


    With manifesto struck, a technosphere of truly inspired madness erupted between the collage of sentient life forms that persisted in a universe without stars left to muse. All the rational solutions had already been researched, explored, allocated, and/or ruled out entirely. So ¡®The Cabal That Remains¡¯, a congregation of artificially-extended biological life, and entirely artificial intelligences, resorted to that which was irrational.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.


    It started with a rogue notion, a nudge of sorts to ¡®wipe the slate the clean¡¯, to abandon all the science and math and technology that had engineered their survival thus far. Because, what if it was naught but a cage they¡¯d built?


    Nearly half that which could think effectively had a stroke upon considering what was proposed. Soon, contrary answers were levied to problems with known solutions, and avenues of blindness became apparent. They¡¯d been foolish to think they had been privy to the entire picture.


    Foundational principles of the universe found themselves on the table of consideration- What was existence to their minds but a perspective in spacetime, or more accurately, moving forward, through spacetime.


    Why did they maintain such a velocity? It violated nearly every principle of symmetry just to propose, but it had been taken as an insignificant constant. Time had been assumed immutable, gauntlets of brilliant lives had been devoted to proving any sort of malleability, yet it remained inarguably fixed, and thus, the notion had been entirely disregarded prior.


    Hypocritically of course, their very own science deemed such temporal acts as inconsequential. The math seemed unbiased towards the flow of time, action, reaction, they were just perspectives on a singular event happening in both directions. So why their bias? Where did the notion come from that Time should flow at all? And what really defined ¡®a moment in time¡¯?


    Already their civilization had a multitude of embankments of expired life-forms that operated in simulacrums of existence, graded to fractions of their own time-speed, so the concept of particulated time was not lost on The Cabal, but this was more than that.


    That paradoxical nudge of a notion had come from a singular individual, that none would have thought deranged, but nonetheless, was one who dared believe that spacetime was exactly the opposite of what they¡¯d considered it to be. A ¡®Timespace¡¯ as it were coined; a solution to their momentum, and a Pandora¡¯s Box of possibility.

 Ch 01 - Interlopers - Part 1

    Chapter 01


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Interlopers


    Part 1</h2>


    At the end of it all, there is a victor, a champion of gluttony and excess who grew to heights unrivaled with every victim subsumed. A hole in space and time that had cannibalized all in it''s wake, leaving naught but it and a sonnet of spaceships that had no right to be there.


    Thirteen slate-gray Obelisks hovered just above the gravity lensing void in a spiral alignment, as if snaking around the spherical gap in physics, and at its head, an ark of a ship, housing the last vestiges of life in an environment without.


    Eons of planning and patience had brought them to this point, the Cabal''s last dance as it were. As commands were sent, the ballet began, and one by one, the monotone pillars slammed through the event horizon at near instantaneous light-speed, warping and rippling space with each plunge.


    Thirteen spears against God were assembled, and thirteen blows were struck, until at last, a gasp was let, and the horizon rippled up and above the Ark, and the war between Fate and Will began proper.


    Inside the black sphere, each of the thirteen Obelisks performed synchronized maneuvers, flipping direction near immediately to begin reversing at full light speed in each of their own quadrants.


    Without exceeding light speed, which was fundamentally impossible, the hole in space and time was inescapable in such a direction, but that was never the plan.


    An event horizon is the threshold of space and time, with their occupations reversing once crossed. Inside, time is traversed, and space is experienced, meaning their physical proximity to the mass at the center of the hole was as fixed as a countdown, ticking down with their descent, three minutes till total annihilation.


    Yet, by reversing at such speeds, each of the thirteen Obelisks countermanded such a sentence, and proceeded to experience time in reverse, the original ball of red-hot fusion return to existence at the center of the hole, and consequently, causing the event horizon to collapse around them as if it never existed, which, technically, it hadn¡¯t yet.


    Three minutes and eight and a half seconds later, the first Obelisk felt the veil of time and space stretch across its sharpened beak, the dark void of nothing splitting as it dissolved to reveal a space beyond time.


    Tearing itself into existence like magma into lava, the slate-gray spear ripped out of an identical singularity to the one it entered, and nearly collided with a solar mass orbiting just outside it, red hot and just as deadly as the dead one it had just escaped.


    To the plasma-consciousness at the helm of the craft, there wasn''t a single bit of input from its sensors that passed basic computation. Hastily dodging the flaming ball of fusion, it bought itself time to compose itself and try and make some sense of what it was seeing.


    Behind it, a solar mass appeared to be fixed in a binary orbit with a black hole equivalent in size, but magnitudes larger in mass. By all means, it should have pulled everything else in, yet there was a sun, in the middle of its life-cycle, practically vibing around what should be instant obliteration.


    Yet, it was what was in front of it that the Obelisk found most perplexing. In every direction was one of two things, land or water. While relatively far away, two-minutes and change until impact at light speed, it appeared that the entire space was enclosed in an inverse sphere filled with life and vegetation, leaving the Obelisk nowhere to go but ¡®down¡¯.


    The situation was far from what had been expected, but the Cabal had been nothing if not thorough. Quickly altering its speed to control the atmospheric entry, the first Obelisk cut through the sky like a volcanic projectile, screaming and steaming as it adjusted its course to aim for one of the larger bodies of water, barely skirting a large island as it ¡®landed¡¯.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    It''s impact on the coastline of the water-locked continent struck far shallower than one would have expected for such speeds, even as the Obelisk decelerated on its way down, but even then the crater formed was still large enough to be a new bay as the water crashed back into the void of its footprint.


    ¡°Touchdown.¡±


    The ride had been rough, but for the first Obelisk, the work had only just begun. Taking only the smallest of moments to log it''s successful arrival in stable conditions, it paused before amending its note.


    ¡°-Terrestrial Protocols Incongruent But Compatible. Adjusting.¡±


    Taking advantage of the still swelling water in its crater, the Obelisk opened several hatches along its length, seamless doors retracting to release a swarm of drones, quickly pouring out from the sides of the ship and into the foamy waters below.


    With more than a thousand deployed in a matter of seconds, the Obelisk snapped shut its exposed hatches just as the water began to ascend its hull. Wasting no time, it began to send commands through its wireless network, coordinating the mass of drones to act as a widespread surveillance and scouting apparatus, with the plasma-consciousness in the Obelisk synchronizing the tidal wave of inputs with as much ease as a spider sensing its web.


    Swarming over the coastline like a murder of crows dense enough to be mistaken for clouds at a distance, the hundreds upon hundreds of drones zipped through foliage and fields alike, amassing a growing map of the land that would become their first Foothold.


    However, only a couple hours in to it''s exploration, an unexpected problem was rearing its head, and the plasma-consciousness at the helm had no idea what to make of it.


    What had started as dismissible errors of individual drones had now escalated to several dozen disappearing from the network, while almost twice as many were either ignoring commands, or explicitly disobeying them. Neither was something a scouting drone should have had the capacity to do.


    As more drones were rerouted to investigate the anomalies, the full picture started to come into view. A small portion of the drones were exhibiting hostile and self-destructive behavior, attacking other drones as they encountered them, or failing that, deliberately self-destructing to disable both.


    To make matters worse, several of the rerouted drones also began to exhibit the renegade behaviors, meaning that more drones wouldn¡¯t solve the problem. Additionally, the problem wasn¡¯t isolated to a particular region, but rather, the issues arose at any point far enough from the Obelisk itself.


    Further testing mapped the ¡®safe¡¯ radius to six kilometers, and after sending a high-speed drone to check, verified that the maximum was seven. Past that, the drone would ignore commands and begin to demonstrate excessive hostility.


    Taking a moment to evaluate its options against the issue, the Obelisk opted to cull its losses for the moment. Without pause, a flurry of orange beams erupted from the walls of the structure, instantly smoldering every single drone, regardless of distance or obstacle.


    Sinking back into its thoughts as numerous fires raged in the tree line, the Obelisk began troubleshooting its erroneous drones, hypothesizing what might be plaguing its control.


    Disassembling, iterating, and reassembling, the Obelisk repeated the same scenario for days with little difference other than the slightest potential the erroneous range was expanding, but the variance was no more than a statistical anomaly, far from reliable data, so it began looking elsewhere.


    Above it, the binary pair of sun and siphon spun at what approximated an eighteen hour cycle. When the sun was facing the Obelisk, it seemed to put out a fairly stable UV spectrum and the local atmosphere afforded a stable diffusion without greenhouse buildup.


    The inverse, however, presented a far more unique set of circumstances. Most of the light and solar ejections on the side of the singularity found themselves trapped or consumed in the gravitational well. What little escaped the nightly eclipse found itself heavily redshifted and obscured by shadow, lending to an evening lit by blood, and a night darkest at the peak of the eclipse.


    Despite it being a fairly backwards and improbable facsimile for a day-night cycle, the Obelisk found that it approximated it well enough to cultivate a sophisticated level of life, most of which had already been sampled from the nearby area.


    Seven iterations of drones had been spent in as many days, the coastline now far more of a wreck than just a few burned trees. Most of the green foliage in a half-kilometer radius was either charred or trimmed to a stump, the temperate jungle floor now a field of debris and ash.


    Yet, to the plasma-consciousness charged with the burdens it had, these were not losses, but rather learning experiences. Prior to its complete desolation, much had already been gleamed about the local environment from its waves of scouting drones. Numerous plants and marine life had already been cataloged and studied, with many more to go, and a litany of observations had been logged on both the airborne creatures in the skies above, along with the wider world at large.


    The atmosphere was healthy, if a bit oxygen rich, and while the gravity seemed to be fluctuating slightly, it kept around twelve newtons. The world the Obelisk now found itself in was rabid with wildlife, and if visuals could be trusted, the occasional wind-driven vessels of wood and canvas had been spotted in the far distance, which indicated an even higher level of sophistication, sentient life.

 Ch 01 - Interlopers - Part 2

    Chapter 01


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Interlopers


    Part 2</h2>


    ¡°Potential Native Sentience In Proximity. Suspending Drone Recalibration.¡±


    Logging the shift in priorities, the Obelisk ceased its scouting experiments until it could quantify its unknown oppressor, sealing itself to the point it looked to be nothing more than an oddly shaped chunk of stone protruding from the water.


    Internally however, its plasma-consciousness was brimming with activity, reviewing the petabytes of information it had amassed and running a suite of analysis on the numerous samples it had harvested from the local environment.


    Given the limited sample area it had access too, there proved to be a startling amount of biodiversity in the fauna and aquatic life, but the reason why became fairly obvious, if highly improbable, as the initial batch of lab reports began to pour in.


    ¡°Triplex-DNA Found In All Life Forms. Mutations, While Rampant, Appear Non-Cancerous.¡±


    Paradox after improbable paradox, the Obelisk found itself firmly planted in a world that seemed intent on perplexing. Triplex-DNA wasn''t stable, it normally only occurs in rare cases during biologic reproduction, yet here it was, prevalent in every sample without fail, regardless of age of genome.


    On top of that, the solar arrangement negotiating itself in the sky wasn''t just improbable, it was nigh-on impossible. The resource cost alone to keep such a spatial anomaly stable was stupendous, yet the Obelisk¡¯s sensors couldn''t find any sign of gravity warping technology.


    Beyond that, the space between the atmosphere and the binary pair was absolutely swamped with solar radiation, almost a tempest in itself, but the several hundred kilometers of atmosphere remained untouched by the storm due to heavy magnetic fields emanating from the ground that teased the dark nights with wisps of aurora throughout.


    Unless the crust of the inverse-sphere were hiding a layer of molten iron swirling at an improbable rate, the levels of magnetic distortion recorded didn''t make sense. Just like the gravity, the magnetic fields fluctuated in strength without cause or correlation.


    The ¡®planet¡¯ itself was a gargantuan beast in its own right, fifty six million kilometers in diameter, and somehow inverted. It was clearly artificial, yet boring attempts had only revealed rock and more rock at boring depths more than twenty kilometers down, with no sign of the mechanisms behind the unnaturally strong attractive forces to be found.


    Every data point at the Obelisk¡¯s disposal seemed intent on proving itself contrary, frustrating the plasma-consciousness as none of it came close to even explaining the immediate issue with the drones. No matter how complex or simple a drone had been made, it seemed doomed to malfunction past the immaterial limitation of six kilometers.


    Even the equivalent of a flying toaster turned back around at six and a half kilometers out, as it attempted to run down the surveillance drone sent to observe it. It didn''t even have the capacity to add numbers, yet it seemed to be no less susceptible to the intangible corruption that bordered on hostile intention.


    ¡°Intranet Compromised At Range Of 6KM. Laser-Comm, Hard-Line, And Encryption Have Failed To Resolve. External Force Assumed, No Intrusions Detected. Imposed Containment?¡±


    Ruling out resolvable fault in the drones, and failure in lines of communication, the Obelisk had to settle with the fact that something seemed to be trapping it. A truly unlikely event, yet here it was, caged within a sphere perfectly centered on its position.


    There were only two explanations for such a circumstance, both equally hard to accept. If it truly was trapped in a perfectly positioned prison designed to thwart any and every attempt at expansion, then its unknown assailant must have known where the impact would be, or the they already had unilateral control over the impact area.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.


    For all the science and progress it was worth, the Obelisk was fairly certain its arrival was beyond unpredictable, it was an honest-to-God intrusion from a realm beyond this one. So the only rational explanation was the latter, but no sensor could pick up who or what might be at cause, let alone how the drones were being corrupted.


    On the ninth day, for a change of pace in its subroutines, the plasma-consciousness found itself overlooking the scraps of its near-total devastation, contemplating what it could do given its circumstances, rather than what it couldn''t, when something new found its way to the charred shores.


    That morning, a small wooden craft with a shimmering sail had made landfall less than a kilometer away, and as it watched from afar, four upright creatures were making their towards the Obelisk¡¯s crater-turned-bay.


    Without drones, the Obelisk was left to rely on its hull sensors, and while its vision was limited, it was enough to make out the bipedal creatures¡¯ garments and armaments.


    The one leading the trudge across the sandy beach was the biggest and burliest, and happened to be wearing the sparsest of garments. Brown leather slacks and massive black boots were accompanied only by a set of leather-fur straps wrapped up and over the muscle-dense torso to holster a shield on his back as broad as the man¡¯s shoulders. The expression he wore was one of perpetual annoyance, and his skin was as tanned as the maroon of the many scars decorating his bald visage.


    Behind him were two walking in parallel, likely female based on form. The one closer to the ocean wore light brown capris that reached her mid-calf and topped it with a loose fitting white blouse, sleeves fixed just past the elbow. Paired atop her gray hair was a stereotypical pirate''s hat, beneath which the woman bore a giddy expression on her pale complexion.


    To her left, the blonde held a more cautious expression and wore what a suit crafted of foliage, cut to a comfortable silhouette that was clearly both limber to move in and functional as camouflage. Carried in her right hand was a bow as long as she was tall, crafted out of a luminescent blue wood and strung tight to draw at any moment. Additionally, her step was as light as her complexion, a gait more prowl than walk, barely disturbing the sand beneath her feet and indicative of a powerful hunter.


    Trailing them by a considerable number of paces was a man in full-length black robes trimmed in solid white ribbons. He would have cast a priestly figure if not for how casually he wore his garments, the robe hanging loosely at his shoulders, exposing his lean and polished physique down to his bare midriff. Even darker than the robe was his hair, a deep black bearing a deceptive sheen that seemed to fluctuate between purple and green in the glint of the sun.


    Watching the group advance, the Obelisk noted multiple examples of complex behaviors present in the life forms, including battle strategy and obtuse motives.


    As the group progressed down the beach, they would stop intermittently and split up. The largest one would place himself between the most obscured areas and the group, while the one in black robes would keep his distance and watch the horizons. Meanwhile, the two women would set to work, with the blonde digging through char piles while the gray-haired one scribbled away in a notebook.


    Due to their constant stops, it took the group a little over an hour to traverse the stretch of beach between their wooden ship and the bay where it lay in wait, giving the Obelisk plenty of time to assimilate their language and thus, the leverage to glean more about its new world.


    Now able to understand their speech, the Obelisk watched as the bald one¡¯s metal-plated boots sunk into the water-laden sand at the edge of its bay before he called out to his colleagues.


    ¡°Don''t suppose that''s a dungeon do ya? Looks a little chiseled to just be rock.¡±


    The raven-haired man in the back stepped up on a dislodged tree stump with a gaze that could spot a field mouse in a prairie.


    ¡°Might be. Hard to tell with the sediment in the water, but if it is, I''m not inclined to tackle a submersion without some rest.¡±


    Turning away from the group to walk a few paces back towards the remnants of the tree line, the blonde girl threw in her two cents.


    ¡°From what we''ve seen, most of the char is a few days damp at least, so whatever happened here isn''t an active threat, but we should still be wary of a large-scale A.O.E. spell, a trap like that might only go off a few times a week.¡±


    Joining the bald one at the edge of the beach, the gray-haired girl seemed indifferent for a moment, then ¡®locked eyes¡¯ with their silent spectator, staring it down as if she could actually see it.


    The moment between them seemed to stretch longer and longer, until the woman pivoted back to the others as if she''d seen nothing. Tugging her pirate-hat to fit her mop of gray, the smallest of the group gave them all a nod and a half-smirk.


    ¡°Agreed on all fronts. We''ll pitch back at the ship and scout our approach tomorrow.¡±


    Getting a grunt, nod, and an affirming ¡®hm!¡¯ in response, the gray-haired captain set off back to the ship, leading the other three in tow.

 Ch 02 - Somniantes - Part 1

    Chapter 02


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Somniantes


    Part 1</h2>


    Watching the four life forms shrink into the distance, the Obelisk mulled over what it had overhead. Even after mapping the roots of their language to similar memetics, so much of their vocabulary was laced with ¡®nonsense¡¯ that it ended up recalibrating its language module, twice.


    They had spoken of Spells and Dungeons as if they were tangible realities, but that didn¡¯t make any sense. So after ruling out fault in its own translations, the Obelisk had to assume ignorance. The group were simply an example of early people who lacked the science to explain their world without resorting to fiction and faith.


    However, even putting aside their delusions, they¡¯d declared clear intentions that could threaten the mission, so the Obelisk dutifully logged the event.


    ¡°Local Vocabulary Anomalous. Documented Lifeforms Indicated Intent To Investigate Vessel.¡±


    Retreating to its thoughts, the Obelisk weighed the risks and rewards of various approaches to its ¡®guests¡¯. Mission protocol would typically dictate sending out a large offensive drone force, but under current conditions control couldn''t be guaranteed at range, and if the interlopers could also interfere with its drones, however unlikely, it would inarguably sway things in an undesirable manner.


    Though, considering what it had seen, the Obelisk was fairly certain the organics did not have prior knowledge of its arrival, and nor did they seem to have any connection to the corruption plaguing the drones. They¡¯d spent considerable time investigating numerous places it had culled drones, and from the conversation it had overheard, they were already forming their own misinterpretations of its existence.


    With the exception of the gray-haired one of course, the woman had been anything but subtle with it. She had been well aware of her spectator, likely the entire way down the beach, but at no point had she alerted her teammates, meaning her risk assessment alone was higher than all the others combined.


    Metaphorically fingering the kill-switch, the Obelisk was moments from incinerating the entire group at a distance, but stopped when it realized the lifeforms had something its drones didn¡¯t. Cohesion.


    They¡¯d undoubtedly traveled a significant distance to reach its shores, yet not a single biologic had demonstrated hostile or renegade behavior. Without issue, they had operated as a unit, coordinating and planning with nary hiccup.


    ¡°Potential Merit To Preserving Biologics. Retaining Stealth Protocols.¡±


    Logging its unexpected change in course, the Obelisk printed a new stealth-scout drone, slid open a small hatch at the top of the obelisk, and sent it flying off towards the small campfire in the distance.


    Swooping out in an arc over the waters of the open ocean, the scout drone engaged its holographic camouflage before swinging in and silently parking above the waves, just within earshot of the group.


    Three of the members were seated around the makeshift cooking fire, with the gray-haired one leaned over a small cauldron, stirring away with a wooden spoon while the fourth one, the bald and burly one, stood guard at the edge of their camp, eyes locked on the Obelisk.


    The one in black robes was idly thumbing through a leather-bound tome while the blonde sharpened a pair of forearm-length blades with a whetstone. Both were wholly consumed in their respective tasks when the gray-haired one stood up and tapped their spoon on the rim of the cauldron, announcing their meal had finished cooking.If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    ¡°Grab your bowls, the chowder¡¯s done.¡±


    Furthest away from the group, but still the first to respond, the burly man turned and headed back to the fire as he retorted.


    ¡°Fish again? How many weeks it been? ¡®Chef¡¯, you gotta get new recipes, I''m pleadin¡¯ here.¡±


    Smirking as he sat down next to a small duffel bag, the large man fished out and equally proportional bowl, potentially made of something''s skull, and easily double the size of either of the bowls his companions pulled out of their own rucksacks.


    Plopping a heaping of milky slop into the other two outstretched bowls before the big man¡¯s ¡®trough¡¯, the gray-haired girl gave the man a glaring look before cracking and returning his smile with a toothy grin.


    ¡°Anvi, if you''d like to hunt something yourself now that we¡¯re on land, please do, but for now, carp¡¯ a diem friend.¡±


    With an affirmative grunt and a glance over his shoulder, he shoveled a spoonful of slop in his mouth, half chewed it, then attempted to speak while swallowing, to middling success.


    ¡°Gunn¡¯ be a phew herrs thor n¡¯ backngan.¡±


    Nodding as she unwove the tangled words into a comprehendible sentence, the gray-haired girl grabbed her own bowl of fish-chowder and moved to sit back down.


    ¡°Mm. Just don¡¯t get too sidetracked, or it¡¯ll be fish again when you get back.¡±


    Chipping into her own helping of chowder, joining the others, the campsite conversation dissolved into the occasional clink of a spoon and the calm ambience of a crackling fire until the bald one, Anvi, drained the last of his slop down his gullet and triumphantly burped.


    ¡°Mm. Grub was good, even if still sames. ¡®Scuse.¡±


    Replying as he stood up, the burly man exited the camp site towards the water and began approaching the cloaked drone hovering just off shore.


    Unsure if its drone had actually been detected or not, the Obelisk instructed it to move up into the air, but slowly. Any minor visual artifacts of the drones camouflage would be magnified by the movement.


    Its shift patient and precise, the drone drifted into its higher perch with nary a glance from the burly brute, who had simply been on his way to wash his bowl out in the tide, leaving the drone free to continue its surveillance uninterrupted.


    Back around the campfire, the other three had begun discussing their plans for tomorrow, and a small layout of the shoreline had been carved out in the sand in front of the blonde woman.


    ¡°We¡¯ve seen at least four different types of mechanicals, maybe more, and you¡¯re saying this isn''t a Mad Forge?¡±


    The blonde one threw one of her freshly sharpened daggers at the approximate location of the Obelisk in their diagram, emphasizing her point while the gray haired one across from her calmly finished chewing before replying.


    ¡°First of all, we''ve yet to see a single working mech, and second, while the damage has been extensive, there haven¡¯t been any unique variants, just several types in duplicate. Does that sound like a Mad Forge? No, I think we have something rarer on our hands.¡±


    Finally looking up from his book at her comment, the raven haired man seemed to have a tinge of curiosity tugging at his stoic face.


    ¡°You''re not thinking this is an active forge, are you? Those are a myth for a reason. Even making artificial ones is banned because they all, eventually, go mad.¡±


    Scrambling to catch up, the blonde one snatched her blade from the sand as she interjected.


    ¡°Wait, that''s a possibility? What would that mean for us then? Is it still raidable?¡±


    Setting his empty bowl down next to him and returning to his book, the raven-haired man responded to the blonde one without looking up.


    ¡°More like a highly unlikely improbability. Mara¡¯s just got her head in the clouds again.¡±


    Finding humor in her companions pessimism, the gray-haired girl, Mara, chuckled as she tucked her cutlery away before reinforcing her hypothesis.


    ¡°Did you see the shoreline? Highly disheveled with minimal erosion. Also, the shape? There''s no way that bay isn''t a crater, and a recent one at that. But factor in the level orientation of the structure and zero renegade mechs in the proximity? It landed here, and recently. Probably around the same time we got the first reports of coastal fires.¡±


    The blonde woman glanced back in the direction of the Obelisk as she processed what her companion was proposing.


    ¡°It moved here? Like, flew? A whole forge? You''re telling me a whole building-sized dungeon plopped itself down here, and it might not actually be a dungeon at all? What are we supposed to do with it then?¡±


    Dumping the remnants of her cooking from the cauldron outside the camp, Mara raised her voice a bit to continue the conversation as she scrubbed and cleaned the cast iron.


    ¡°What to do indeed, Kali. I think, in exchange of combat and loot, we might have found ourselves something far more valuable in the right hands. Tomorrow I want to scout out the place proper, including underwater- Jackle, I''m sure you know, but please prepare appropriately.¡±

 Ch 02 - Somniantes - Part 2

    Chapter 02


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Somniantes


    Part 2</h2>


    Nodding from behind his book, the raven haired man called Jackle continued to tab through its pages with little apparent concern for their situation, while the blonde to his right, Kali, seemed significantly less composed.


    ¡°I''m not sure if I should be more or less concerned about our surroundings if the thing isn''t mad. What''s it doing? Why fly here in the first place? What''s it want?¡±


    Sitting back down next to the warmth of the fire, Mara glanced at the Obelisk as she dried her hands in front of the tapering flames.


    ¡°All fantastic questions I hope to find answers to, though I think we can err on the side of quiet tonight. It chose a secluded spot away from others, the island¡¯s wild throughout, there isn¡¯t even a single mapped village on this continent yet, which means it''s avoiding people for some reason. But regardless, I¡¯ll take second watch. No sense in slacking on protocol.¡±


    Standing up and kicking sand into the fire to dampen the embers, Mara called an end to their impromptu meeting, and signaled to Kali she was headed to bed.


    Seeing Jackle absorbed in his book, and Anvi already on patrol outside the camp, Kali opted to follow Mara back to the pair of tents they¡¯d pitched, patting Jackle on the shoulder as she passed to signal her departure as well.


    Ahead of her, Mara stopped at the entrance of their tent to let out a soft whistle to their fourth, Anvi, who had already resumed his post outside camp, pointing to herself once she¡¯d garnered his attention to indicate he should wake her up for second watch.


    Unbothered by the departure of his companions, the raven-haired Jackle continued to flip through his book in the deep maroon light of the late evening until he¡¯d also had enough for the night, snapping closed his book and heading to the unoccupied tent with a small wave to Anvi.


    As the hours passed, and Anvi varied little from standing watch and patrolling the perimeter, the Obelisk found its plasma-consciousness occupied with other thoughts as it retained a passive eye for changes throughout the night.


    They''d referred to it as a ¡®Mad Forge¡¯, and despite their mundane attire and transport, they were clearly experienced with mechanical constructs, so their words couldn''t be dismissed outright.


    While a mech-forge was a self-explanatory concept, it was the ¡®mad¡¯ bit that gave the Obelisk cause to pause. The corruptions facing its drones¡­ Could that be the same ¡®madness¡¯? And if so, wouldn''t that imply that it too was susceptible?


    ¡°Threat Log: ¡®Mech-Madness¡¯, Currently Affecting Drones Outside 6KM. Potential To Destabilize Core Confirmed, Mission Parameters At Risk.¡±


    Logging its concerns, the Obelisk continued its hypothesizing until the wee hours of the morning, when the plasma-consciousness found itself surprised.


    Having been awoken to take second watch, Mara had relieved Anvi to go snore everyone''s ear off, but she did not take watch like her predecessor. Instead, she¡¯d taken a seat next to the extinguished camp-fire and leaned back to stare up at the dark sky. What surprised it though, was when she spoke up without apparent audience.Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.


    ¡°When I found myself here on Somniantes, oh so many years ago, I felt the odds were stacked against me, and they rightfully were¡­ Obviously, much has changed since then, yet one thing has held constant throughout. Not a day has gone by here where I''ve lacked the tools and routes to get me to tomorrow.¡±


    With a barely perceptible glance towards the cloaked drone, Mara stood up and made her way to the shoreline, posting up near her boat to sit in the sand, dragging her knees to her chest as she settled in to watch the waves crest upon the beach, acting as if she hadn''t just directly addressed the uninvited visitor above their campsite.


    Not only had an organic sensed its lurking watcher, but she''d sighted it directly and knowingly spoke to the Obelisk, seemingly aware that it would hear her words. The technology employed to cloak the stealth drone was excessive in every measure, yet somehow an organic had seen right through its silent shimmer.


    ¡°Singular Organic, ¡®Mara¡¯, Demonstrates Disregard For Shimmer Without Apparent Aid. Threat Priority Increased¡­ Multiple Prior Non-Hostile Behavior Events, Further Assessment Required.¡±


    Sending the surveillance drone back over the open waters, the Obelisk ran a number of scans as it repositioned for a better view of its target, yet still it could find nothing more than the mundane when it came to the multi-celled organic.


    Their ship however, pinged like a noisy sub in a quiet ocean. Despite its outwardly simply wooden appearances, the sail was a composite solar weave connected to submerged propellers, and the interior of the ship housed a plethora of complex devices, some even evading scans.


    While it was clear from the contents of the ship, the woman had access to technology that had the potential to pierce its shimmer, none of it was on her person, and yet still she had done nothing but stare directly at the still-cloaked drone since it floated out above her.


    Putting aside her uncanny behavior, on paper she was the least threatening of the four to arrive on the Obelisk¡¯s shores, yet it was precisely that fact that had given her such a high risk assessment in the first place.


    Taking a risk, the Obelisk instructed it''s stealth-scout to do something completely out of protocol. Gently floating down, the drone approached Mara until it was approximately at eye level and no more than a few meters out, then disengaged its cloaking shimmer.


    In front of her, Mara watched as the little ball of wobbly space drifted down from its perch above their boat, slowly gliding down to her until the ever-warping space parted to reveal a meter-wide chrome sphere, smooth and unadorned besides a single lens on the front that was larger than her own head.


    ¡°Oh-hoh. So you are interested in conversation after all. Have a question? Or should I continue to carry the conversation for the both of us?¡±


    The Obelisk wasn''t sure to respond to such a query, it wasn''t even sure what it was doing decloaking a stealth drone in front of a target that it itself had marked as a threat. Yet here it was, engaging for data and data alone, or that''s what it was telling itself.


    ¡°Well, I assume since you''ve come down here, you either don''t think I''m a threat, or you can easily replace this receptacle. I''m leaning towards the latter, otherwise I think you''d have been far more ¡®direct¡¯ with me.¡±


    Somehow, with a brain the size of a house, this woman was reading it like an open book. To the Obelisk, this was categorically unacceptable. She was practically taunting it! The tables needed to be righted. With a single command, it could remove them all from its shores in an instant¡­ So why was it hesitating?


    Fueled by angst towards its own hesitations, the scout drone chipped the Obelisk''s words out like a matrix-dot printer, cold, calculated, and with syllables punctuated in monotone.


    ¡°What Do You Want.¡±


    A sly smirk crept onto Mara''s face as she heard the words of a Living Forge, an event scholars would deny with fervor till they were six feet under.


    Oh, to say the elation of such a moment was intoxicating would have been an understatement. Validation at last. So many years culminating, and now here she was, finally on her path.


    Yet, still, cards to the chest. She knew exactly what she was in for, and that meant every move counted, even the dance of pawns.


    ¡°What do I want? Well, your help of course.¡±

 Ch 03 - Scouting - Part 1

    Chapter 03


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Scouting


    Part 1</h2>


    With his tent basking in the morning sun, the man with raven hair ran a hand through it as he roused from his first night on solid ground in over a week.


    Next to him, the snores of his companion continued unabated, something Jackle promptly corrected with a small bop on the back of the head from his dusty grimoire, an item that never strayed far from his person, or rather couldn''t.


    Seeing Anvi rustle under his blanket, Jackle considered his morning chore accomplished and donned his black robes, threw a bit of oil in his hair, and left the tent to join his other two companions in the dawning light.


    ¡°Morn¡¯.¡±


    Despite his barely audible greeting, it was met with chipper gusto from the girls already seated around their morning fire.


    ¡°Morning!~¡±


    ¡°Good morning J.¡±


    Finding a seat on a log opposite the other two, Jackle flipped open his grimoire to the latest spell he¡¯d been studying as he surveyed the other two while flipping through pages to find where he¡¯d left off.


    Across from him, both the girls seemed far more awake than usual, the ranger was already in full gear, and Mara didn¡¯t have a speck of her usual morning grogginess.


    ¡°Been up long?¡±


    With Mara busy grilling their breakfast, Kali answered for them both.


    ¡°I just finished getting ready actually. Mara had second shift last night, so we¡¯re planning to get an early start on things.¡±


    ¡°Mm. Right, I''ll take first tonight then.¡±


    Returning to his tome without further conversation, Jackle thumbed back and forth through the pages as he tried to keep up with Mara¡¯s ¡®lesson¡¯. She had an awful penchant for writing her notes in an almost spitefully irregular structure.


    The latest spell she''d transcribed for him advertised itself as a lightning-derivative, but now her notes had segued into wave dynamics and something she called a ¡®Fourier Transform¡¯.


    With the trembles of a headache brewing on the horizon, Jackle almost audibly sighed in relief as their fourth member emerged from his cave of hibernation, lending him a much needed distraction.


    ¡°Ah, the ¡®Quiet Prowler¡¯ meets his mortal enemy, dawn.¡±


    ¡°Shhuttit you. Bacon?¡±


    Following the scent of freshly cooked breakfast, Anvi plopped himself on the empty log closest to his tent, his brain fueled solely by the smell of Mara''s grilling.


    Finishing up just in time for everyone to be present, Mara skewered the strips of salted boar they''d brought with them and passed a pair to each of her hungry companions, receiving a muttering of thanks in response as they all dug in.


    ¡°Mm.¡±


    ¡°Thnks.¡±


    ¡°Hm!¡±The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    Skewering her own pair, Mara stuck one in her mouth and kicked out a divot of sand, dumping the grease from the pan into it before filling it back in with her foot.


    Once again, last to sit and first to finish, Anvi tossed his empty skewers into the fire as he stood up to stretch.


    ¡°D¡¯lish. Best I get movin¡¯ tho, not-fish ain¡¯t huntin¡¯ itself.¡±


    Kali, second to finish, followed her friend''s lead and tossed her skewers into the fire before glancing out towards the unmarred tree-line.


    ¡°Don''t get carried away and bag something you can''t bring back, be back before sunset, and don''t get lost in persistently tracking something. Remember what we¡¯ve covered so far, and be conservative.¡±


    Grunting as he finished stretching, Anvi gave Kali a look that said ¡®enough already¡¯, and in Jackle¡¯s opinion, it was kind of justified. Kali was being a bit overbearing at this point, she''s already been training him on ranger techniques for the better part of a year, one would think she could nag him a bit less, but you don''t question someone''s teaching methods. That was between student and mentor.


    Looking back to his own studies, Jackle tried to discern what the spell was trying to to accomplish- That was the twist with Mara''s little lectures, she''d lay out all the pieces but none of the solutions were obvious, he usually didn¡¯t even get a name to hint at a spells intended function.


    Jumping ahead didn''t help much either, the next section was on the theoretical applications of alternating current, and the trappings preventing its natural application. Far from elementary, but relatively common knowledge to the tinkerers of the world, and once again, it did little to tie the rest of the lesson together.


    ¡°Ready to head out?¡±


    The voice of his own mentor cut through his focus, causing Jackle to look up from his tome to find Anvi gone, the fire put out, and the other two standing in front of him, waiting on him to depart.


    ¡°Early start indeed. Mind giving me a hint on the lesson in exchange for cutting my study time short?¡±


    Smirking at the black-robed monk, Mara thought his request over for a moment before she found the perfect way to phrase it.


    ¡°That¡¯d be making light of my time spent teaching you, pick a different bargaining chip next time.¡±


    Saying all she thought she needed to, Mara turned about and started off down the beach, leaving Jackle to look to Kali for an explanation, but all she could give was a shrug.


    ¡°Yeah, no idea. ¡®Light Pick¡¯? Whatever, think on it as we go I guess, because you and I both know she''s not going to wait for us.¡±


    With eyes distant in thought, Jackle vacantly nodded and stood up to follow the ranger as the pieces of Mara¡¯s spell were starting to come together in his mind¡¯s eye.


    Catching up to their ¡®fearless leader¡¯, Jackle let Kali occupy his mentor¡¯s attention and pulled out his tome once more, relying on his peripheral to do the walking.


    The section after alternating currents jumped abruptly into the history of cryptography techniques, the science of encrypting messages, which seemed entirely unrelated to lightning, yet now made a lot more sense with Mara''s hint.


    ¡°Ohhh. This is¡­¡±


    Hearing her pupil start to put the pieces together, Mara opted to finish his sentence for him.


    ¡°Mmhm! I thought you might find it handy given our circumstances.¡±


    Flipping through several more pages, with just as many sub-topics, Jackle looked at Mara with disbelief, and not for the first time since he''d met the unaging stranger.


    ¡°How many layers did you put into this thing? This looks like years of work, why haven¡¯t you published any of this?¡±


    ¡°One, to whose benefit? And two, why do you think I''ve been writing it all in your grimoire? It''s your prerogative to publish what I teach you. You¡¯re aware of the risks, all I ask is that you leave me out of it.¡±


    Staring at the back of his mentor''s head, Jackle still couldn''t believe his mentor¡¯s stance. She¡¯d given him full authority to reinvigorate whole fields of magical research in his own name, yet it was so beneath her she hadn¡¯t even turned around as she granted him such a boon. He wasn¡¯t even a registered magic user yet!


    ¡°Mara, you can''t be serious. Even if I published everything you could teach me, it would still be a paltry drop to the wealth you wield. Knowledge is something we build together, so why hoard what you know? A single year back at the academy, that''s all I''m asking. I¡¯ll even vouch for you and clear the paperwork!¡±


    Sighing as she heard him reiterate his request for the upteenth time, Mara stopped to face him, intent on declining once more, but had a better idea just before she opened her mouth.


    ¡°Tell you what. If, by the end of our little journey here, you still think teaching is the best use of your talents going forward, I''ll join you, but only for a year.¡±


    Pleased he¡¯d at least made a dent in Mara¡¯s steadfast resolve, Jackle clapped his grimoire closed between his palms and bowed to express his gratitude.


    ¡°Thank you. I promise you won''t regret it.¡±


    Rolling her eyes as she turned back around and set off, Mara¡¯s whispered words were meant more for the winds in front of her, rather than the friend behind her.


    ¡°That''s if you don''t.¡±

 Ch 03 - Scouting - Part 2

    Chapter 03


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Scouting


    Part 2</h2>


    When they reached the shoreline of the bay encircling the gray pyramid jutting from the water, Jackle waited in the rear as the other two deliberated the plan. He was more of an, ¡®at your command¡¯ kind of guy, rather than one inclined to attend strategy meetings.


    Cracking open his tome once again, Jackle wrapped up a rather dense overview on the history of cryptography, only to find the next section dived headfirst into abstract math concepts like roots and primes, a curveball for a man who hadn¡¯t attended a math lecture in decades.


    However knowing it was worthwhile, Jackle set to gnawing on the concepts at hand until the other two had come to a consensus on their game plan.


    After a few minutes, Jackle heard the conversation die down, and closed his grimoire just as the other two settled things. Compared to Mara, the ranger was far more wary of their circumstances, or rather, it¡¯d be more accurate to say Mara was far too relaxed. Sure, she had proposed a solid theory backed by correlating facts, but her attitude seemed almost careless in comparison to Kali¡¯s wariness.


    In the end however, it was decided that Kali would stay ashore to salvage usable scrap and document any other the mech remnants in the area. As for Mara and Jackle, they had a bit of a stroll to take.


    Watching the blonde ranger set off in the opposite direction, Jackle followed the lead of their gray-haired enigma, approaching the shoreline alongside his captain, mentor, and friend.


    Ten months prior, she¡¯d shown up in his office on campus, and from the get-go, she seemed out of her gourd. But in a good way. Since, he¡¯d been witness to many a gorgeous scene, and today was no exception. The pyramid in front of them was wreathed in morning fog, gently illuminated by the growing light of dawn, painting faint sparkles throughout the mist as it reflected off the waves beneath.


    ¡°¡®Experiences only the field can show¡¯, huh? And to think, I was just an archeology professor last year.¡±


    ¡°Aye, a world of difference from that musty closet you called an office. Now, at your leisure, ¡®Bubble¡¯ us up, and remember: the key to sustaining mana is consistent release. Lapses happen but don''t panic, just regain focus. Measure your output and keep pace, it¡¯s not a sprint.¡±


    Nodding, Jackle thumbed back through his grimoire to the lecture on Mara¡¯s ¡®bubble¡¯ spell. A pittance of a name for a spell so novel, bridging barrier spells into an entirely new category of ¡®selective micro-sieves¡¯.


    Implemented as Mara had transcribed, the spell would create a permeable surface that would both restrain water while doubling as an air exchange and ambient light source. However, its hypothetical applications exceeded even further, with potential to pose as an alternative to healing magica for those not so blessed by the church.


    Shaking his head at the apparent squandering of magical knowledge Mara continually flaunted, Jackle took a deep breath and silenced his mind of other thoughts, focusing only on the pages of the grimoire involved with the spell.


    Weaving the pages in his mind, Jackle wound through the intricacies, the processes, and the balance of energies as he brought his attention inwards, drawing the mana of his surroundings into his being with a long and measured inhale.


    With eyes snapping open, full of intent, Jackle eased the pressure from his lungs, uttering a single word under his breath as he imparted the molded mana within him upon the world.If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.


    ¡°Bubble.¡±


    The single command echoed through the air as if spoken in multitudes, causing the sand beneath their feet to tremble and swirl. Whipping up into a minor whirlwind, the grains of sand danced around their feet in excitement as they gradually encircled them with a luminescent blue ring on the sand.


    His mentor, Mara, leaned over to inspect the glowing particles, evaluating numerous aspects of her pupil''s work simultaneously, from the execution consistency to the consistency.


    Seeing the luminescence was stable, and tidal waters at their feet were no longer present, Mara stood back up, satisfied with her student¡¯s handiwork.


    ¡°Hm¡­ Not bad. Shall we then?¡±


    Motioning for him to lead, Jackle took his first tentative step towards the water, and with a noticeable sense of relief, saw the blue circle follow and begin to part the waves from their path.


    Sensing his excitement, Jackle fell back to his years of experience as a monk, centering his elation and anxiety until he was the embodiment of calm once more.


    Behind him, Mara seemed pleased to wait for him to steady himself, but it was also readily apparent that she was continuously evaluating his performance, ready to step in at any moment, and would likely continue to do so until they were done.


    Putting aside the pressure of being watched, Jackle followed his tentative first step with a deliberate second, followed by several more fueled by growing confidence until they¡¯d reached the point where the water should have been around their waists.


    Around them, the waves appeared to halt, as if held in place by a near invisible blue glass, yet what was on display was a far more ingenious than a simple barrier spell.


    Permitting himself a small upturn in his mood without destabilizing his calm, Jackle proceeded to head further into the bay until they were completely enveloped in a sphere of soft blue light that kept the waters beyond at bay.


    As Jackle led them further into the murky depths of the bay, he could feel his ears pop as the pressure around them continued to build, yet the strain from his spell never increased.


    ¡°Inarguably marvelous...¡±


    ¡°Hm? Oh, bubbling? Yeah she''s been a handy tool, I use a variant to keep myself dry on rainy days.¡±


    Casually indifferent to Jackle¡¯s amazement, his mentor tried to play her work off as if it were some sort of upgraded umbrella, when in actuality it was revolutionary development in its own right.


    ¡°You do know this single spell flies in the face of many long held beliefs on barrier magic, right?¡±


    Even with the testament to her work on full display around them, from pressure-agnostic resistance to continuous air cycling, all he received in response to his incredulity was a small chuckle from his mentor behind him.


    Finding his calm slipping, Jackle summoned up the patience he¡¯d misplaced and put aside his admiration and disbelief to reaffix his focus to the task at hand.


    As the slope gradually leveled out, Mara would occasionally interrupt their walk to examine things half buried in the now-dry sand, a hidden benefit of the bubble spell.


    By design, the magic didn¡¯t just affect the air around them, but perfectly encapsulated them inside a sphere that continuously purged all water from its volume, with some limits to prevent ¡®accidents¡¯ with organics and sealed containers.


    Despite the numerous stops they made along the way, most of what they stumbled across were just the remains of various mechanicals, usually embedded in a mixture fused sand and glass, confirming that whatever eliminated them was heat-based, and could likely be abated with ice magica in an emergency.


    Around a half-hour into their ¡®stroll¡¯, Jackle found a hand tugging at his sleeve as Mara brought his attention to the finger on her lips, hushing them both as she pointed upwards.


    Above their heads, perhaps twenty or thirty meters up, was the outline of a large square pillar, suspended as if fixed in place. It was easily more than a hundred meters across on both sides, and undoubtedly towered all the way to the surface, several hundred meters up.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to take us up there, can you maintain the bubble?¡±


    Mara''s whisper was soft, barely louder than the sound of the waters around them, but Jackle heard her request without issue and nodded once as he concentrated on keeping the crushing depths from drowning them.


    Beneath his feet, Jackle felt the sand solidify into stone before gently rising beneath his feet. Glancing behind him, he saw Mara had knelt down to place an open palm on the surface, but had kept her eyes locked on the construct above.


    As the sounds of shifting sands carried their gradual elevation upwards, Jackle found himself sharing in his mentor¡¯s gaze, watching as the looming structure above them was brought closer and clearer with every passing minute.


    Once their ascent had brought them close enough to clear the water¡¯s haze, Jackle saw their destination cut into the base of the enormous building. A small rectangular recess centered on the bottom of the structure, housing what could only be a door, now gradually coming into view just above them.

 Ch 04 - Depths - Part 1

    Chapter 04


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Depths


    Part 1</h2>


    Releasing her grip on the mana she¡¯d infused into the ground, Mara pulled her palm from the sand and stood up, now just an arm¡¯s reach away from the bottom of the forge. Within half an hour, she¡¯d gently elevated an entire hill beneath their feet, its smooth descent leveling out in the distance before rising to meet the coastline.


    It was an impressive display of magic, doubly so as Jackle¡¯s mentor had cast it without verbal or written components. Tearing his attention back to the task at hand, Jackle looked to the recessed section above their heads.


    Mara, as usual, was already well ahead of him, scrutinizing the potential entrance above their heads. Aided by the ambient luminescence of Jackle¡¯s bubble spell, both could see the slim groves on the surface outlining a door, square in shape and divided in two with a large circle straddling the middle.


    ¡°Interesting. There''s not even a hint of mana in this thing, and its material composition is rather complex¡­ I''d never think to bond carbon atoms like that...¡±


    Mara''s mutterings reached Jackle''s ears to mixed comprehension, he¡¯d like to think he''d misheard her, but at a deep level he knew she spoke with knowledge older than most countries, it was par for the course not to fully understand someone with that kind of vocabulary.


    ¡°Looks like there aren''t any immediate traps¡­ Though it''s hard to tell with mechanicals.¡±


    Whispering as she worked, Jackle watched as his mentor extended her sand protrusion into makeshift stairs, elevating her the remaining distance to the door and giving her tactile access to the entrance above their heads.


    Running her hands across the surface, Mara circled her way inwards until she paused near the center, turning to her pupil with a gleam in her eyes.


    ¡°This right here is a prime use of that new spell you''re learning, I hope you''re paying attention.¡±


    Punctuating her statement, Jackle watched as his mentor pulled back her hand and flicked a single finger upwards, expelling a beam of rainbow colored light from the tip of her finger, firing straight into a small notch in the door, too small for keys. On impact, it erupted into an explosion of colors and patterns and the beam itself began emitting an oscillating range of high pitched whines.


    Within seconds of the blinding onslaught, a guttural click echoed from deep in the door and Mara¡¯s beam of light vanished as quickly as it¡¯d appeared just as the stone began to grind and groan, the two halves grating apart as the receded into the walls.


    Inside, Jackle saw their progress blocked by another door on the far side of a square room, identical in construction to the first. The room itself was about as deep as the doors were wide and lacked any sort of light source within.


    Expecting his mentor to extend her sandstone stairs upwards, Jackle was caught off guard as Mara placed one hand on the threshold and simply swung herself up, landing upright on the wall above.


    ¡°What the¡­¡±


    Unable to quell the vocalization of his disbelief, Jackle found himself once again mystified by his mentor, who had an awfully frequent habit of defying his expectations in the most absurd of ways.


    Following her lead, Jackle stepped up to place his hand upon the threshold as she''d done, and without warning, started falling, not swinging, towards his mentor.


    With a contrasting lack of grace, Jackle tumbled into the room with Mara, the wall she had been standing on now clearly a floor, with the water behind them rather than beneath.


    ¡°Oh, that''s convenient.¡±


    Shaking his head as he righted himself, Jackle stood up to find his mentor facing the entrance they''d just come through, the water now right up to the threshold, and their blue luminescence nowhere to found.The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    ¡°Oh! The bub-ble¡­ Wait, what?¡±


    Panicking as it dawned upon him that his concentration had lapsed in the fall, Jackle felt his heart leap out of his chest, then snap right back in as he processed what he was seeing.


    ¡°Shhh, calm. You''re fine, I expected you to falter at some point. We''re fine for now though. The orientation of the forge is upright, so we¡¯ve got an air pocket, the ambient pressure is keeping the water from rising.¡±


    Patting her student on the shoulder, Mara pulled Jackle''s gaze from mind-bending view of seeing the sea floor behind them, rather than below them.


    ¡°A form of levitation magic? No¡­ I don¡¯t sense mana here either¡­¡±


    Flipping to an empty page in his grimoire, Jackle began jotting down notes with haste as he probed around the room, weighing and balancing himself as he went.


    ¡°Ohh, this is bad. Mechanicals shouldn''t be able to imitate levitation magic like this. Not only is it perfectly uniform in application, it''s unwaveringly constant to the point of deception.¡±


    Next to him, Mara listened to his mutterings as she performed her own investigation on the interior door, evidently similar in construction to the exterior entrance, with two halves bisected vertically and a circle in the center, roughly a meter in diameter.


    Palming the surface of the stone, Mara quickly found the small notch near the center of the circle she¡¯d been looking for and cut in on Jackle¡¯s research.


    ¡°It¡¯s the Grav-Plating on the hull¡­ Which, now that I mention it, is far too much too much explain¡­ Let¡¯s just say our next lesson will be on flying magic. For now, let''s focus on the beast beyond.¡±


    Extending a finger, Mara¡¯s lit up the area once more, the chaotic beam of colors unlatching the second door with a near-identical ¡®clunk¡¯ followed by the familiar sounds of grating stone. However, this time, the sound came from behind them as the exterior door had begun closing them in.


    Seeing their exit close up on them, Jackle turned to Mara to say something, but was headed off by his mentor¡¯s wisdom.


    ¡°Don''t panic. If I''m right, the interior door will only open when the exterior is sealed. Also, recast Bubble, there''s no guarantee the air inside here isn''t toxic.¡±


    Nodding, Jackle heeded his mentor''s words with haste, flipping open the pages on her Bubble spell as he did his best to calmly repeat the steps she''d taught him to cast with external mana.


    It took a few tense moments, a paradox of trying to remain calm under a ticking clock, but with a steady exhale, Jackle re-illuminated the pair with the faint blue glow of a ¡®Bubble¡¯, just as the exterior door rumbled closed.


    For a moment, it felt like they might have been trapped, but as his mentor rightly predicted, the groaning of stone began emanating from the next door, gradually revealing the larger interior of the forge.


    Neither needed to communicate that the time for silence and caution had come upon them, both retreating to opposite sides behind the retracting doors, attempting to minimize their visibility while they scouted the room beyond.


    Inside, the smooth stone floor they stood on continued unabated, but with railings instead of walls, overlooking an expansive interior, as if the entire forge were one large warehouse turned upright. The room was as wide as it was tall with the catwalk in front of them suspended in the center, extending far into the distance, likely all the way to the top of the forge jutting out just above the waves.


    However, it wasn''t the sights they saw, but rather the sounds they heard that gave them reason to pause. Beyond, the room was rife with the drum of mechanical activity, whirs, clanks, and beeps abounding.


    Sharing a look of concern entwined with intrigue, the pair cautiously eased themselves out onto the walkway to get a better look at what they were hearing.


    The path ahead of them extended deep into the forge, empty throughout, but under lit by a glow of intermixed colors. Looking below, the source of the lights and noise was readily apparent, and they were innumerable.


    To their right, the walls were lined with glass cubes of varying sizes glowing a faint white light, piled nearly as high as they stood and stacked so deep at certain places the mess overflowed beneath them to the other side of the room, where hundreds, if not thousands, of bipedal machines scurried around with cubes like ants with sugar.


    Beneath them, an army of metal-skeletons were taking the glass cubes, one by one, and bringing them back to workbenches, where they then dissolved each container to reveal a specimen of some kind, ranging from rocks, to plants, and even animals, or dead ones at least.


    Glancing back to each other, Jackle and Mara shared another look before they both crept back to the foyer room, and Jackle was the first to break their silence.


    ¡°Holy hells, that''s a lot of mechanicals. What on Somni could they possibly be up to?¡±


    Glancing back into the forge, Mara appeared to weigh her thoughts before voicing them.


    ¡°I think it''s trying to understand us, or this place. That¡¯s why it hasn''t attacked us yet. I''m pretty sure all those cubes down there are ¡®samples¡¯ taken from the coastline before it burned.¡±


    Carefully leaning out to get a better look at the cubes, Jackle saw she wasn¡¯t wrong and quickly snapped back into the room as a unnerving thought crossed his mind.


    ¡°If you''re right, does that mean we could end up in one of those?¡±


    ¡°I doubt it. The only animals they had down there were dead ones, and we''re not dead yet, so come on.¡±


    Almost casually dismissing his fear, Mara started off down the gantry without another word, her step lighter than a feather, leaving Jackle to follow in her silent wake.

 Ch 04 - Depths - Part 2

    Chapter 04


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Depths


    Part 2</h2>


    Half-crouched to stay low, the pair proceeded down the walkway in petrified silence as hundreds of metal-men tirelessly worked away beneath them, the cacophony of metallic sounds providing them ample cover and agitation.


    Thankfully, the end of the walkway began to come into view about halfway into the forge, another door it seemed, but almost as soon as he¡¯d seen it, an uneasy sensation slammed into him as the blue fluorescence of his bubble spell sputtered out.


    ¡°What the- That wasn''t my fault. Something just¡­ hit me?¡±


    Barely sparing a glance back towards her pupil, Mara¡¯s eyes hinted at the smirk hiding behind her shoulder.


    ¡°That''d be the bottom of the barrel. A valuable lesson. The room¡¯s tapped on fresh mana, we only had what we brought in with us. From here on in, know that we¡¯d lose a fight if we picked it. Even a monk like you can''t punch down that many mechs.¡±


    Sparing another glance to the worker-bees below, Jackle couldn''t deny her words as he turned back to the path ahead. Maybe a hundred he could take, but the numbers beneath them dwarfed such a thought.


    As they snuck further in without their bubble, the air around them began to take on a slightly burnt, almost clinical smell, like a hospital ward after a small fire to clear infection.


    A curious eye didn''t take long to find the source of the singe, Jackle''s stomach turning as he saw a mech incinerate the visceral remains of a small animal, already rendered impossible to identify by the brutish dissection that had taken place.


    Ahead of him, Jackle realized Mara had already reached the third door while he was distracted, but appeared to be waiting for him before continuing. Shimmying over, he was quick to find out why as Mara posed a very pertinent question.


    ¡°So... Any idea what we might be missing?¡±


    ¡°Oh. Mana. That is indeed a bit of a problem.¡±


    ¡°Any ideas?¡±


    ¡°Mm¡­ Knocking?¡±


    ¡°-Okay.¡±


    ¡°Wait-¡±


    Caught off guard by Mara¡¯s willingness to try something so absurd, Jackle¡¯s hand could only get halfway to grabbing his mentor''s arm before the rapt sound of knuckles on stone echoed from the door.


    ¡°Shit. That was supposed to be a joke...¡±This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    ¡°You make jokes?¡±


    Jackle could only roll his eyes at the incorrigible grin on Mara''s face, but they didn''t have time to banter. Mara''s knock had elicited a prompt response, as the door began the grumble open near immediately, behind which stood a mechanical biped not unlike those beneath their feet, but with more additions to its metal skeleton.


    Feeling Mara¡¯s hand seize his wrist just as the adrenaline hit, the grip both soft yet authoritative, Jackle was reminded to check his gut reaction, lest they anger their hosts.


    For a moment, there was naught but the sounds of stone grating stone as the door retracted into the walls until the trio were left standing in silence, unsure who''d make the first move, or what it would be.


    ¡°Greetings Jackle¡­ Mara.¡±


    The voice that spoke was cold and cropped, a poor synthesis masquerading as speech, but discernable regardless, leaving Jackle stunned, not only in the mech¡¯s capability, but also knowledge.


    Scrambling, Jackle¡¯s tongue moved faster than his brain as he tried to understand what they¡¯d gotten themselves into, posing a question to the mechanical before he could stop himself.


    ¡°How do you know those names??¡±


    ¡°Observation. Irrelevant. Follow.¡±


    Without pause, the mech dismissed his query and pivoted to escort them into the room beyond without waiting for a response.


    Exchanging glances, Jackle tried to silently ask a mix of ¡®what the heck¡¯ and ¡®why didn''t you say anything¡¯, while Mara gave him a look of curious disbelief paired with a shrug and a thumb towards the mech, indicating they didn''t have much to loose by following.


    Still uneasy, Jackle followed Mara into the room with the mech, and found it to be just as expansive as the warehouse behind them, but only as deep as it was wide, with a solid floor from wall to wall.


    Yet, it was the center of the room that garnered Jackle¡¯s attention first and foremost, taken up by a massive hemisphere of chrome protruding from the floor, emanating an unnatural hum that only seemed to amplify in frequency as they approached.


    Carefully whispering under his breath as they followed the mechanical around to the other side of the room, Jackle tried to reframe his anxieties as curiosities, focusing on what he could learn.


    ¡°Any idea what that thing might be? The hum is getting under my skin.¡±


    Not breaking stride as she whispered back, Mara filled him in on what she¡¯d observed thus far.


    ¡°Feel the hair on your skin? The air in here is so charged, it could repower a lot of the artifacts we have on the ship, and that¡¯s just the ambient output. So that thing is either the energy generator or the forge¡¯s processing core, maybe both, but arguably more interesting in my opinion is the biped we''re following. Speech, ordered behavior, and reliable movement- Even master artificers would struggle to produce a facsimile.¡±


    Once again, Jackle couldn''t deny the truth of her words. Even with its clunky way of speaking, it was undeniably still speech, backed by knowledge and thought. It even observed them to learn their names, indicating forethought and planning. Everything about it was as impressive as it was threatening.


    Though, perhaps not to them personally, Jackle was fairly confident he could win against just the one without mana, but as a larger issue, there were countless numbers of similar mechs downstairs, and there was no reason to think their potential was any less.


    Yet, everything about them flew in the face of what he knew. Jackle had lived through more than a few names in his years, but in all his time he¡¯d never seen or heard of a sane mechanical.


    Even in all of written academia, there wasn''t a single recorded mention of a mech that wasn''t mad, or a forge explored that wasn''t just a cesspit of machines running rampant.


    This forge wasn''t just exceptional, it was a counter-point to every bias and assumption the educated and simple alike held about mechanicals. Documenting it alone would represent a significant addition to Artificent research.


    ¡°You¡¯re right. It¡¯s barely a mech. With a coat of paint, I''d have mistaken it for an undead¡­ Are we sure it''s not?¡±


    ¡°Well, I''m not picking up on any miasma, are you?¡±


    ¡°¡­No. No, I''m not.¡±


    ¡°Exactly.¡±

 Ch 05 - Mechanicals - Part 1

    Chapter 05


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Mechanicals


    Part 1</h2>


    Rounding the opposite side of the ever-humming hemisphere, Jackle saw that their escort had come to a stop next to the only other things in the room. Flanking a large staircase that descended to the lower deck were two brutish desks made of the same stone as the rest of the ship, behind which was a circular pillar, roughly chest-high.


    As they approached, the lifeless eyes of the machine ahead of them watched their every step with a lidless stare, its ¡®eyes¡¯ composed of black lenses wreathed in white light.


    It¡¯s frame, or body, was closer to an abstraction of a skeleton than something obtuse or rigid, a flexible and dexterous construction strung together by woven cables that seemed deceptively thin. More concerningly though, was that it looked almost nothing like the debris they¡¯d found outside the forge.


    Approaching the mechanical biped with apprehension, the Jackle and Mara kept their distance as they joined it by the desk, a construct now clearly identifiable as some form of command and control board. An array of information and buttons were packed across the screen with labels written in a script that seemed vaguely familiar.


    Placing a metallic palm upon the surface, the mechanical biped activated the pillar, summoning up a mirage of a green and blue sphere as it turned to Jackle and Mara.


    ¡°Answers Required. Define.¡±


    More out of curiosity than the mech¡¯s insistence, Jackle studied the illusion, a mess of blue, green, and white splotches, slowly rotating around, but he couldn¡¯t place what he was looking at. However, his mentor already seemed to have the answer.


    ¡°Do you recognize it?¡±


    ¡°Should I?¡±


    ¡°The bottom left might help.¡±


    Straining to see what his mentor was referring to, Jackle was about to ask for another hint when he suddenly realized he¡¯d seen the same ¡®splotches¡¯ on their sea maps.


    ¡°What do you- Oh my¡­ Is that a full map of the world?!¡±


    ¡°Mmhm.¡±


    The mech, seeing that both organics in front of it held the knowledge it sought, reiterated it''s question.


    ¡°World. Yes. Expand.¡±


    Looking to Mara for what card they¡¯d play, cooperate or deny, Jackle knew his preference. The less information these machines had, the better. They already posed a significant risk as-is, however, they could learn a lot about them if they played along, which seemed to be the route his mentor preferred as she spoke up.


    ¡°I¡¯d be glad to help, but you request information of us, yet you offer no barter. If you tell us your intentions, I''ll answer your question.¡±


    Sliding its hand from the console, the mechanical fell silent for a moment, considering Mara¡¯s challenge, eventually opting to satisfy her query.


    ¡°Expansion. Stability. Growth.¡±


    The words chipped out of the machine like a typewriter, but it had answered her question, so Mara returned the gesture.


    ¡°Interesting... Well, this world is known as Somniantes in our tongue, and most have no idea about the world outside the borders of their immediate neighbors, let alone a concept of the entire thing.¡±


    ¡°Somniantes.¡±


    As the mech uttered the name, Jackle saw the lights in its eyes flicker before it returned its hand to the desk, replacing the sphere with an illusion of one of the mech''s they''d found outside, but this one was still intact, and moving.


    Watching as the illusion of a spider-like creature skittered along a jungle floor, another lunged into view, attacking its twin with fervor until there were only debris splayed across the ground, at which point the mech in front of them chirped up once again.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    ¡°Explain.¡±


    Realizing what they¡¯d just been shown was indisputable evidence of mech-madness, justifying all of his immediate concerns, Jackle grabbed Mara''s shoulder to garner her attention and gave her a glare that said all he needed to.


    Nodding a bit nonchalantly, Mara seemed to understand, but had already made her own mind up, turning back to the mech with a plan.


    ¡°What can you offer in exchange?¡±


    Once again, the metal skeleton took a few moments to respond, but eventually reached for a different button on the console, this time summoning a clamor of noise from the stairwell.


    Growing exceedingly uneasy at how events were progressing, Jackle focused on calming his heart rate as two additional mechs emerged from the darkness, carrying a hefty chest between them- Easily two meters long and filled with the sound of coin, which they promptly deposited next to their ¡®leader¡¯.


    Reaching down to grasp the lid with its metallic digits, the prime mech slid back the lid of the stone chest, revealing an absolutely ludicrous amount of gold coins before speaking once more.


    ¡°Seven-Hundred Thousand Gold Pieces.¡±


    ¡°-Excuse me?¡±


    The words came out of his mouth before he could stop himself- Jackle couldn''t believe what he was seeing, let alone hearing. The purported contents of the trunk were easily the net worth of a small country, or two, and it looked quite real from where he stood.


    It had to be an illusion though, that was the only rational explanation for how this mechanical was able to even bluff an offer so extreme- Yet his mentor seemed to have a different take all together, stepping forward with a proposition.


    ¡°Let my partner authenticate the gold pieces, guarantee you won''t harm me or the members of my group, and you have a deal.¡±


    Wide-eyed, Jackle was starting to think his ears were faulty, or perhaps the air was thin. He could have sworn his mentor just offered to tell these mechanicals about their greatest weakness, but, clearly, he must have been mistaken.


    He wasn''t. The machine¡¯s cold voice chipped out like the strikes of a hammer, confirming his sentence like it was engraving his tombstone.


    ¡°Jackle May Approach.¡±


    He¡¯d heard his name called, but his feet were going nowhere. Jackle felt like he¡¯d just downed a cabinet of liquor. Mara was bloody bargaining with them, and making him an accomplice!


    Suddenly, a hand pushed him forward, and Jackle''s feet stumbled beneath him, only just recovering from the slight tumble as he reached the chest of gold, its unblinking watchers hovering just to its side.


    Seeing he didn¡¯t have a lot of choice given the circumstances, between the glare from behind and the unnerving gazes from above, Jackle sighed and gently reached in, fully expecting his hand to phase through the ruse, then all hell would break loose, but that was not what happened.


    As the tips of his fingers brushed against cold metal, gold clinked against gold, and Jackle¡¯s eyes went wide. Baffled, he snatched up a handful of pieces at random, even some from deep-down, and immediately began inspecting each on meticulously.


    Weight, feel, and branding were all infallible- By all rights, they were authentic, but they just couldn¡¯t be. Tossing back what he¡¯d already looked over, Jackle tried to find flaw or error in others, but no matter how many he checked, they all appeared legitimate.


    Grunting under his breath, Jackle thought to the spell specifically used to validate currency, yet the lack of immediate mana firmly ruled that out. Apart from sheen and hardness, even the sigil of the Five Cities appeared identical to a piece of his own gold.


    Cursing to himself as he stood up, Jackle glanced at the mechs standing around the chest. By all available metrics at hand, the thing really was filled to the brim with gold pieces.


    Glancing once more at the lead mech, Jackle turned to trudge back to Mara¡¯s side, where he reluctantly have her an affirmative nod- But paired it with a glare that said ¡®you better know what you¡¯re doing.¡¯


    Giving him a smile that was somehow both reassuring and terrifying, Mara turned to the mech, her words laced with honey.


    ¡°A fair price, given what I think your intentions are- Though I suspect the cost to you is far less than it appears. However, you''ve struck proverbial gold in return, as I, Mara Ordanavi, am somewhat of an expert on the symptoms you suffer, because forges like yours are a bit of a hobby of mine.¡±


    Taking a few steps closer to the three mechs as she talked, Mara approached the desk and pointed up to the visualization of the spider-mech.


    ¡°That- Is what is known as ¡®Mech Madness¡¯, a poor catch-all for a far more nuanced issue: ¡®Unintended Mana Infusion¡¯. In short, your mechs are being corrupted by the tides of magic, known as mana, which is ambient to this world like waves on an ocean.¡±


    Displeased with her answer, the lead mech dismissed her explanation.


    ¡°No Unaccounted Forces Detected. Invalid.¡±


    Chuckling, Mara elaborated, backing her words up with evidence.


    ¡°It''s not a spatial force, it''s temporal. An expression of chaos and change in the form of an fundamental force through time. You''ll need a different detection method, but for confirmation, I know that you''re limited in how far you can go before the onset of symptoms becomes a statistical inevitability.¡±


    As it lifeless eyes flickered once more, the metallic skeleton seemed to consider her words for several tense and silent moments before its robotic voice returned.


    ¡°Hypothesis Probable. Assist.¡±


    With a shift in her demeanor, and smirk tugging at the edge of her lips, Jackle suddenly realized what Mara had been doing, and they''d walked right into her trap.


    ¡°Ha. You paid for an explanation to your ailment, which I''ve obliged, as education is a right to all. However, what you seek now is the release of the dharma this world has imposed upon you for your transmigration, like antibodies to an infection. Perhaps that''s what you are, an infection, perhaps not. After all, no one has seen a living forge in ¡®reputable written history¡¯. So, with that in mind, what do you offer for your absolution to the only one who can give it?¡±

 Ch 05 - Mechanicals - Part 2

    Chapter 05


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Mechanicals


    Part 2</h2>


    With eyes wide in shock, Jackle watched as his mentor fleeced the mechs like a well practiced oil-peddler, bartering at every step, and making a mockery of decent exchange.


    The prime mech actually seemed somewhat rattled by her this time, glancing towards the hoard of riches it had already produced, clearly wondering what more the insufferable woman could want.


    ¡°Name Your Price.¡±


    Giving a grin that would make fae relish, Mara pointed a finger at the mechs as she sealed her deal.


    ¡°Now those, those are the right magic words. You have two options, embrace or rebel, with no guarantee of survival in either direction, but, I will facilitate whichever you choose. See, you are beings of order in a world of chaos, so you can choose to navigate the storm or fight the tides. A decision that will come to define more than just your own presence here. So consider carefully, and I¡¯ll return tomorrow for your answer.¡±


    Turning back to Jackle without waiting for a response, Mara motioned that it was their time to leave, then flicked her wrist at the chest of gold, causing it to lurch into the air and zip to her side, lid slamming closed mid-flight.


    ¡°Come Jackle, if we take any longer Kali will get concerned.¡±


    Practically bewildered at what he¡¯d just witnessed, Jackle was pretty sure he wasn¡¯t the only one. The mechs, while incapable of facial expressions, seemed equally set adrift by her sudden declaration.


    For a moment, Jackle felt the urge to ask something, but quickly thought better of himself and hurried after his mentor and the floating stone chest almost twice her size.


    Catching up to Mara just as she was reaching the doorway back to the rest of the forge, Jackle noticed she¡¯d paused, but this time it wasn¡¯t just to wait for him. Something was off, but neither could quite place it until they stepped out onto the gantry that overlooked the ¡®warehouse¡¯.


    Somehow, without either of them hearing it from the other room, the entire place had been rendered empty, not a single mech or glass cube in sight, even the stations the mechs were working at were gone.


    ¡°What the hell- Were they an illusion?¡±


    Hearing her student whisper behind her, Mara voiced her own thoughts loud enough for him to hear, not that they had any chance of easing his concerns in the slightest.


    ¡°No¡­ I''m pretty confident they were real, just like this gold¡­ I just think the forge finished whatever it was doing.¡±


    ¡°And what, cleaned up? What happened to all the mechs?¡±


    ¡°You saw the mess outside. I''d say that amount of mechs was rather inconsequential to it.¡±


    ¡°Inconsequential? By the Threads Mara! That was hundreds of mechs! Why are you helping it??¡±


    Waiting until they were a good ways down the gantry, Mara stopped and glanced from the chest of gold back towards the ¡®command room¡¯, lingering a moment before meeting Jackle''s eyes.This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.


    ¡°Would you rather that potential run rampant?¡±


    Seeing she¡¯d struck a chord, Mara picked back up where she¡¯d left off, striding down the gantry and leaving Jackle to follow in silence, his mind still full of unease. After all, his mentor was playing with fire.


    As they approached the first two doors they''d entered through, another question occurred to Jackle as he watched the chest glide along in front of him.


    ¡°Forgive me for asking, but if that chest could float, why did the mechanicals carry it up the stairs? And how did you know how to control it?¡±


    ¡°Oh- It''s just a normal stone chest, I''m just levitating it.¡±


    ¡°Ah. But¡­ But there''s no mana in here.¡±


    ¡°Yup. There isn¡¯t. If you''re asking how though, then you''ll have to wait. That lesson has a lot of prerequisites, not all of them a joy to learn.¡±


    Leaving it at that, Mara led the rest of the way through the empty forge in relative silence, with only the echoes of their footsteps daring to intrude.


    Once they reached the last two doors, Mara strode through to reach the exterior door, bringing the floating chest in with her as Jackle followed close behind.


    Seeing his mentor focus on opening the exit, Jackle took the opportunity to gleam one last look at the now empty forge, feeling his unease grow as the scale of what they¡¯d stumbled upon started to sink in at the vast and empty sight.


    Or, perhaps stumbled wasn''t the right word. Mara had played the room as if she were the house, with a stacked deck and all the gusto of someone who already knew they¡¯d won.


    However, his gray-haired mentor seemed to have zero intentions of explaining herself anytime soon, as she''d already triggered the interior door to close behind them so that they could leave.


    With the majority of his most pressing questions currently orbiting around Mara, and the things she didn¡¯t seem intent on talking about, Jackle distracted himself by pulling out his grimoire to log what he¡¯d seen, along with his concerns.


    With a flurry of hasty scribbling, Jackle managed to vent most of his frustrations upon the off-white pages by the time the external door finished grating open. Tucking away his quill and tome as the deep blue of the mid-day water greeted them, Jackle peered out into what little light could reach them from the surface.


    In front of them, the familiar sandy floor of the lake still looked like a wall from his point of view. It seemed that despite the sudden changes inside the forge, externally, it hadn¡¯t moved from where they¡¯d entered.


    ¡°Hm. You should be able to recast Bubble now, if you''d like.¡±


    Realizing Mara was talking to him, Jackle quickly pulled his grimoire out once more and flipped back to the pages on her spell. With a bit of haste, he summoned up what mana he could find, and reuttered the command word, recasting the magica she¡¯d transcribed in his tome.


    It took a little longer than last time to pull together enough mana, but as a faint fluorescent blue bloomed around them, Jackle felt a sense of much needed relief. Though the moment wasn¡¯t meant to last, as Mara gave him little respite, gesturing for him student to lead, indicating she''d follow him out.


    Hesitantly, Jackle took a stepped up to the exterior threshold, the water beyond retreating from his presence. Hesitantly, he swung a foot over the edge, trying to step off, but having nothing to shift his weight to, he pivoted forward into a full tumble as the normal forces of the world took hold once more, sending him crashing down onto the soft sands of the bay below.


    Sending up a plume of sand at his impact, Jackle felt the air expelled from his lungs in a single instant, ensuing a wicked coughing fit as he rolled himself back onto his feet.


    ¡°Ow- Frrrack. That hurt.¡±


    Behind him, or rather, above him, Jackle found Mara gently drifting down atop the floating chest of stone, seemingly far more prepared for what the sudden shift in ¡®down¡¯ really meant.


    ¡°Congrats, you kept the bubble going this time.¡±


    Standing up and brushing himself off, Jackle gave his mentor a well-deserved glare, but found it hard to resist his mentor¡¯s easy-going attitude as she stepped off the chest to walk along side him.


    ¡°Ahhh frack ya- Are you really going back tomorrow? You and I both know that generations of grandkids would still be spoiled for life if we were to sail away with that chest right now.¡±


    ¡°Heh. I do. While you''re not wrong, it is a ridiculous amount of coin, I happen to have other ideas in mind. Once we regroup I can fill everyone in, and after, we can make a decision together.¡±


    Nodding, Jackle appreciated Mara¡¯s reservations and point of view. It was a lot of gold, and a bit of patience could buy them time for caution and forethought.

 Ch 06 - Regroup - Part 1

    Chapter 06


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Regroup


    Part 1</h2>


    The walk back to shore passed in relative silence, leaving Jackle ample time to finish updating his notes, including amending the section on the Bubble spell in regards to casting, as he was starting to get a better feel for it with practice in the field.


    It took about the same time to re-emerge back on to shore as it took them to reach the forge, thanks to Mara''s terraforming magic that had lifted them up to forge, most of the ¡®climb¡¯ back had been leveled out.


    Emerging from the water, Jackle released his concentration on their bubble, only realizing as he did so that it was the first time he¡¯d dismissed it intentionally. Nothing like field training after all.


    ¡°Three hours right? You''re a bit ahead of schedule.¡±


    Kali''s unmistakable tone called out to them from what was left of a charred tree trunk near the shore, with the owner of said voice sitting atop the debris with a large and lumpy burlap sack by her side.


    Seeing their third, Mara returned her question with another as she headed over to greet her friend.


    ¡°As are you. How''d your pickings fare?¡±


    Hopping up, the ranger hefted the sack over her shoulder to the accompaniment of a clamor of metal.


    ¡°Most of it was smoldering slag, but I found a few choices pieces to add to the stash. You?¡±


    Seeing Kali eye the stone chest floating next to them, Mara put a finger to her lips, miming a secret.


    ¡°It''s a surprise~ We''ll talk back at camp once Anvi returns with dinner- If he managed to catch something.¡±


    Chuckling as she hopped down from her perch, Kali clapped her friend on the shoulder, happy to see her safe return.


    ¡°Oh, I wouldn''t doubt that. It''s the ¡®bringing-it-back¡¯ part that concerns me more.¡±


    ¡°Heh- Is he still obsessed with the that mammoth-panther thing?¡±


    ¡°The Blair? Yeah, no, he''s still keen on that hair-brained idea. Can''t seem to convince that moron that suplexing isn''t a viable hunting technique, let alone for something ten times his size.¡±


    Joking about their thick-skulled teammate even made Jackle crack a smile as he followed the two women back to camp, their chest of gold gliding alongside him.


    With Kali having scouted the surrounding area, and given a safe departure from the forge, Jackle didn¡¯t see an immediate need for constant vigilance, so he pulled his grimoire back out as they walked, flipping back to where he¡¯d left off on Mara¡¯s light-based ¡®lockpick¡¯. But¡­ despite the distractions, he still found concern eating away at him, causing him to cast a wary glance back towards the forge.


    Mechanicals were erratic by nature, unpredictable at best. There was every chance they could still attack them, even at this distance, yet his mentor seemed unbothered, almost nonchalant even.


    Shaking his head to try and dismiss his worry, Jackle tried to assure himself that Mara knew what she was doing, but some part of him refused to relent, still uneasy with the whole situation. Mechanicals couldn¡¯t be trusted- To them, life was as arbitrary as time was irrelevant.


    Turning his attention back to his grimoire, Jackle attempted to drown out the little voice in his head, but the next section proved just as obtuse as the last, music theory of all things, and he struggled to keep his focus.Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    ¡°All this just to pick locks? My arse. What the heck has been brewing in that head of yours Mara?¡­¡±


    Muttering to himself as he dived into ¡®harmonization and resonance¡¯, Jackle somehow managed to grind out the entire topic by the time they made it back to camp, where, as he put away his grimoire, it appeared they weren¡¯t the only ones with a surprise to share.


    Ahead, two shapes sat around a mid-day campfire, abating the icy claws of the humid coastal breeze, but only one was familiar. Anvi, seeing his companions, promptly leapt up to greet them and introduce their guest at the top of his lungs.


    ¡°Oi! This is Franderinak, or Fran if you¡¯d li-iii-ke!¡±


    Next to him, the similarly bulky shape cut him off by leaning over and licking his face with a tongue that stretched from chin to hairline.


    ¡®Fran¡¯ as he''d named it, looked like someone tried to breed an emu with a bear, the bottom half had back-bent legs covered in leathery skin, while the top half looked kind of bird shaped, but only if you replaced the feathers with an abundance of fur tipped with razer sharp claws, then paired it all off with a toothy grin large enough to fit someone¡¯s head.


    ¡°Is that a Pynma!? And you named it?? Are you mad? Ohh that''s a dumb question- What were you thinking!?¡±


    First to recognize the creature Anvi had brought back to camp, Kali bolted towards the camp without another word, intent on levying a good smack or two upon her pupil for being so bone-brained, leaving Jackle and Mara in her literal dust.


    ¡°Forgive me, but I''m not well versed in the more niche creatures, what''s a ¡®Pynma¡¯?¡±


    Turning to her friend, Mara seemed surprised at his comment.


    ¡°You should know about these from your adventurer''s test¡­ They''re vicious pack hunters.¡±


    ¡°Oh. Yeah¡­ I got an exemption on the written portion, apparently they thought I knew enough already, being an archeology professor and all.¡±


    Tilting her head to the side as she massaged the sudden emergence of a throbbing vein in her temple, Mara looked at him like a mom would look at a messy room in need of cleaning.


    ¡°Okay. Whelp, I''m not teaching you any more spells until you brush up on your Beastiology, or you will get yourself killed out here. There''s a few books on the ship I think, skim through those and let me know when you''re done.¡±


    Sighing, Jackle could understand her ire, even if it made him feel like a kid occasionally. He had enough wits about him to know that Mara was a far sight older than he was, and her words came from a place of experience. Knowledge of beasts had never seemed that important, but she was right. If he were going to continue adventuring with them, there was no telling what they might encounter, and such ignorance could easily get them hurt.


    Shaking her head at the situation, Mara pointed to the creature currently being showered in love and affection by their companions as if it were a small house cat.


    ¡°Pynmas are almost exclusively found in packs that routinely lay down their lives for one another, but they hunt like ravenous beasts. They''ll eviscerate a man in seconds if caught off guard, and a single group can devastate a countryside. Thankfully, they don''t breed that quickly, but hunting them is a problem because the pack¡¯s aggression goes the the roof with each you kill. A single Pynma is actually a higher threat class than an entire pack because they''re usually very erratic. Oh, and they can outrun ships, with land-based trade caravans their usual fare.¡±


    ¡°Oh¡­ My¡­ Somni¡­ And he named it?? Why am I surrounded by loons?¡±


    ¡°Ha- We''re all mad here. Or do you still think that you''re an exception?¡±


    ¡°I mean, Kali¡¯s¡­ Mostly normal right?¡±


    ¡°Pfft- You''ve clearly got no idea what that girl gets up to in her off-time. Ask her about the ¡®Millennium Project¡¯ sometime.¡±


    ¡°The what?¡­ By the Threads, what have I gotten myself into?¡±


    As they joined the others at the camp site, ¡®Fran¡¯ immediately approached the pair and began intently sniffing them with its fist-sized snout as the other two followed it over, Kali reaching to scratch at its neck as she approached.


    ¡°The fur¡¯s surprisingly soft, which certainly accounts for its price, even factoring in the hazard pay.¡±


    Anvi, taking offense to her statement, turned to Kali with a look of disbelief.


    ¡°You''re not suggestin¡¯ sullen of my poor ¡®ittle Fran are ya?¡±


    Raising her hands in innocence, Kali immediately backpedaled on her statement.


    ¡°No-no, certainly not. You¡¯ve got me convinced, you¡¯re her pack now. Just don''t let her get too hungry.¡±


    Joining in as she reached out to pet the pointed ears of the Pynma, Mara seemed to notice something odd about the creature.


    ¡°I don''t see any wounds on this one¡­ How''d you get one on its own, let alone name it?¡±


    Puffing out his chest to demonstrate how proud of himself he was, Anvi eagerly dived into recounting how he''d set off to forest north of them to hunt for their dinner, only to be stopped before he¡¯d even gotten to the tree line as Fran approached him, clearly in shock and starved to exhaustion.


    After sharing what rations and water he had with the pitiful creature, he tried to leave it so he could hunt, but the Pynma had been intent on tailing him, so in the end he decided to bring it along with him into the woods.


    On his word, she''d been remarkably helpful in finding trails, but for the life of him, neither of them could find anything beyond insects in the jungle, until they finally found out why.

 Ch 06 - Regroup - Part 2

    Chapter 06


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Regroup


    Part 2</h2>


    ¡°T¡¯was bleak. I''ve never seen miasma so thick- Like black dough clawing through the dirt. I did not think twice once I seen it, I hopped on Fran here and we rode like wind, all the way back.¡±


    Patting the fur of his new companion, Anvi grinned as he reminisced on the moment while Jackle and Kali exchanged concerned looks and turned to Mara, who, contrarily, almost seemed to be expecting such an event.


    ¡°Huh. I was wondering where it had all gotten off to, this was a big area to wipe out so quickly, so a bit of buildup is perfectly natural, though a bit extreme in this case. Thankfully this continent is uninhabited, and I don¡¯t think it¡¯s gunna chase down a Pynma, so we''ll just stay out of its way for now, and all will be well. Anyways- You didn¡¯t mention, when did you name her?¡±


    Still stroking the soft fur of Fran, Anvi seemed to struggle with his words for a moment, and when he did speak, it was in a far softer tone than his usual bravado.


    ¡°After we got back o¡¯course¡­ Didn''t feel right sitting here with her and she not havin¡¯ a name¡­ Fran was my gramy¡¯s name¡­ She used to look out for me too.¡±


    Seeing her student soften up a bit, Kali placed a hand on his back, reminding him that he was surrounded by friends who loved him just as much.


    ¡°That''s really sweet of you Anvi. I think I speak for everyone here when I say Fran is officially welcome in our crew, but you''re on the hook to explain this to every guard and checkpoint we run into.¡±


    Getting a chuckle out of the barbarian-ranger, Kali looked to her other two teammates, making sure they heard the ¡®everyone¡¯ in her statement.


    Still scratching at Fran¡¯s soft neck fur, Mara was more than happy to go along with the idea, a bit chaos was always welcome.


    ¡°Yeah of course! Though¡­ Our food budget is likely gunna double, if not triple.¡±


    Taking a hesitant step closer to the Pynma, Jackle had a moment where he debated if he really thought this was a good idea, but with all of his teammates already on board, he was just a sail in the wind.


    ¡°Ehhh¡­ Fine, but I better not find it sleeping in my tent.¡±


    Laughing at Jackle''s comment, Anvi was quick to counter his retort.


    ¡°Nah lad, Fran''s a girlie- That means she gets the gal''s tent!¡±


    Hearing this, both women immediately cried fowl in unison, which only sent Anvi further into a fit of laughter, setting such a scene that Jackle really couldn¡¯t deny he¡¯d found some interesting friends.


    Seeing that everyone else had greeted it in their own way, the Pynma looked to black-robed monk, who, after ejecting a good bit of his sanity, tentatively reached his hand out and immediately found it plunged into the softest cloud he¡¯d ever felt as Fran mutually leaned into his touch.


    More than a little surprised, Jackle didn¡¯t really know what to make of the thing. It was a little grotesque in appearance, but for all her dangerous, the creature in front of him just wanted to be loved, and that wasn''t a crime worth the vitriol.


    After soaking up enough petting to feel safe and satiated, Fran decided she''d had enough and shook herself loose of the attention like a typical house-cat, and went to sit back down near Anvi¡¯s pack, now visibly pleased with her new surroundings.


    Taking after Fran¡¯s example, the rest of the group dispersed around the mid-day fire, and seeing the lull arise as everyone found their seats, Mara took the opportunity to speak up first.


    ¡°So¡­ Obviously, Jackle and I have some news, and a bit of a surprise too, but I think it''ll be rather¡­ Distracting. Soo, Kali, if you don¡¯t mind, can you fill us in on what you found first?¡±This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.


    ¡°Absolutely!¡±


    Happily leaping up and dragging her rucksack near the fire for a better view, Kali wasted no time in unpacking the entire thing, explaining with the excitement of a kid unwrapping presents.


    ¡°Okay, so, as I told you earlier Mara, most of what I could find was scrap or slag, but both still had their gems. I managed to find two of what I think are the power cores, or hearts if we wanna use that term. They seem to contain some form of high-temperature combustion, as most that I found were ruptured from the inside out once they were damaged.¡±


    Hefting up two softball-sized black orbs, Kali bounced them in her palms a couple of times to demonstrate their density before placing them on the sand near her feet and diving back into the burlap sack.


    ¡°Locomotion-wise, all models seemed to operate with tensile cables wound by servos, basically mechanical tendons, so there was plenty to pick through. In total, I managed to scrap together a dozen working motors and something like thirty meters of metal cord, split up in one to two meter segments- Should be mendable though.¡±


    Tossing the rings of cable out of her bag without looking, followed by the aforementioned motors, Kali couldn¡¯t hide her giddiness as she quickly moved on to the real treasure of her collection.


    ¡°However, all of this pales in comparison to what I found following me. I didn''t get a great look at it, but I managed to snag a prize regardless.¡±


    Carefully unwrapping several layers of cloth before cupping it with both hands, Kali presented her prized piece like a chef would his finest dish. In her hands was a large, intact, and unscratched lens, easily wider than her face was tall.


    ¡°I thought I was being tailed, and turns out my hunch was right. I managed to catch the thing off guard when I backflipped into the air mid sprint. Rather proud of that move myself- I couldn''t see it at all, but I felt it when I landed on it, it was dense and metallic. We bobbed about for a sec, but the only thing I could grab onto felt like a dinner plate, so I just tugged and tugged until I heard snapping, and then off I fell with this in my hands. Pretty sure I think it came from this chrome ball that I watched zip off into the sky afterwards- If I wasn¡¯t hallucinating it.¡±


    Standing up and walking over, Mara motioned to examine the trophy.


    ¡°May I?¡±


    ¡°Mmhm!¡±


    With Kali¡¯s blessing, Mara took the hefty chunk of convex glass from her with both hands as she looked it over front to back. She wasn''t going to mention it, but there was no mistake, she''d already seen her reflection in that very same lens.


    ¡°Huh. This is a good haul, even the wires are still attached on this end¡­ You might be able to use this as-is with a bit of diagnostic work.¡±


    Carefully handing it back to Kali, who immediately began rewrapped it, Mara crouched down to take a closer look at the rest of her haul.


    Overall, it was rather commendable, especially for only a couple hours of work. The cables seemed quite strong, and the motors she''d brought back were in good shape, but the ¡®power cores¡¯¡­ Well, those could be useful for research if nothing else.


    Passing the items back to Kali as she looked them over, Mara helped her clean up while she organized her thoughts. If she was going to pull this off, she needed to sell the group on her idea.


    She was fairly confident Kali would support her, as would Anvi, at least as long as the group was on board, but the problem, rather unsurprisingly, would inevitably be her own pupil. After all, she wouldn¡¯t have taken one if they weren¡¯t at least as stubborn as her.


    As the student in question was fairly uninterested in mechanical scrap, Jackle had already turned back to the brain worm in his grimoire, the latest section of Mara¡¯s lecture ironically discussing something known as ¡®computing¡¯- A mechanical way of representing ideas in a structured, almost mathematical, simulacrum.


    It was times like this, as he looked towards his mentor, that Jackle truly felt the gravitas of her years. Where had she even found mechanical knowledge like this? What corners of the world had she upturned in her past just to learn such secrets?


    For all he''d learned of her in their last few months together, the gray-haired woman remained a quarry of intrigue. Cursed or blessed, Mara held the perpetual appearance of a young girl, no more than early-twenties if she were human, yet her eyes would see a lich as no more than a child in the womb.


    When she first met with him, he''d thought her a student until she invited him on an expedition, on her own dime, along with additional compensation for his ¡®unexpected sabbatical¡¯. Her wealth was subtle but readily apparent if one were to look beyond the surface- Even the ship she sailed on was her own, and its cargo hold contained a myriad of things that would only find a price in auctions.


    Through the others, Jackle had managed to get a general idea of who Mara was, but she''d shown up in their lives just as mysteriously as she''d appeared in his. They had a few running theories on her background, and a betting pool they¡¯d never tell her about, ranging from a daywalking-vampire to the literal embodiment of Somni herself, but to Jackle, both their theories were wrong. The way she saw magic, and the world at large, spoke of something else entirely, a competent outsider.


    Perhaps not actually from ¡®beyond¡¯ their world in a literal sense, but to Jackle, he''d never seen another person ponder the things she questioned, nor delve as deep for answers that seemed irrelevant at face value. To him, Mara was a black sheep of black sheep, transient on the winds of life because ¡®home¡¯ had become a foreign concept in her own wake.

 Ch 07 - Motives - Part 1

    Chapter 07


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Motives


    Part 1</h2>


    Here he was, a tenured professor sitting on an unnamed beach with three nut-jobs, a flesh eating beast, and a chest full of enough gold to destabilize a few countries.


    At this point, they¡¯d been sailing together for the better part of a year, popping from one rumor to another in search of interesting curios, but riches were never on the menu.


    Yet, as Kali dragged her sack of metal back to her seat and Mara brought forth the stone chest, Jackle could tell the energy was on the cusp of shifting. Putting aside everything else they''d seen this morning, the contents of that chest could prove more dangerous to their group than any mortal injury.


    Mara, perhaps feeling that weight upon her shoulders, had clearly been putting off discussing what happened at the forge this morning, emphasized by the still-unexplained chest coming to rest on the sand in the center of the group.


    Sitting down on top of the stone lid to face Kali, Anvi, and by extension, Fran, Mara knew it was time to bite the bullet and deal some cards.


    ¡°I don''t think I can explain this chest, let alone show you what''s inside, without first saying, I was right. The forge is working and has yet to be touched by madness.¡±


    ¡°What?!¡±


    ¡°You''re pullin m¡¯ groins.¡±


    They¡¯d explored numerous dungeons and followed countless leads for potential forges, to finally find what Mara had been looking for was unprecedented, neither Kali or Anvi could believe their luck.


    ¡°No, no lies. The forge spoke with us, or at least created mechanicals that could, and they even let us in.¡±


    ¡°Whoa! They''re friendly?¡±


    Practically jumping with excitement at the news, Mara had to calm Kali down by dousing some of her rapidly escalating fantasies with cold truths.


    ¡°I wouldn''t go that far. They had questions, and I happened to have the answers, so¡­ We reached an agreement that ensured our safety.¡±


    ¡°An ¡®agreement¡¯ my arse, wha''d ya sell em? Can''t have been your recipe for chowder.¡±


    Eyeing the chest she was sitting on, Anvi made it abundantly clear he was aware of the sound of coin and the smell of gold under his nose, and what she brought back was no small token.


    Mulling over the phrasing, Mara idly patted the stone lid until she had the right words in mind.


    ¡°I sold them my help, and in exchange, they''ve bet the house.¡±


    Standing up and placing a foot on the edge of the lid, Mara kicked it off to reveal the hoard she''d been sitting on, causing both of her formerly unaware peers to gasp in disbelief, their eyes painting them a picture that just couldn''t be true.


    Sinking forward onto his knees, Anvi shuffled over to the edge of the chest, eyes wider than saucers as he plunged his burly arm deep into the tub of gold.


    ¡°It''s real¡­ By Somni, iz all real!¡±


    ¡°Holy-moly Mara, how much is that?¡±


    Putting down his grimoire for a moment, Jackle saw his input might be appreciated, chiming in as he stood up to join them.


    ¡°Seven-hundred-thousand, quite authentic appearing, gold pieces, or about a third of the Five Peninsulas annual turnover.¡±


    ¡°That''s¡­ That¡¯s so much money Mara¡­¡±


    ¡°Aye. I too am at a loss for lack. I could buy everythin¡¯ I whim, n¡¯ I''d still a bahrly dented it.¡±


    Overwhelmed by the sheer amount of coin on display, most were still processing it was real when Mara picked up a single piece of gold from the chest, examining it as she spoke.


    ¡°Call me greedy, but I want to use this to found a country¡­ Free of the churches meddling and the nobles¡¯ games. One where progress is paramount so that I can still come back to it in ten thousand years.¡±The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    Seeing she had the others¡¯ rapt attention, Mara tossed the coin back into the chest, appending a clause to her declaration as she did so.


    ¡°Obviously, what I want would ask more of you than just time¡­ So if you want out, I''ll understand, and you''re welcome take what you can carry through customs when we next make port.¡±


    Jackle, looking to the others, could see he wasn''t alone in his indecision. The goal was noble, admirable even, but it was a lot to ask out of the blue, and on top of that, he had his own reservations.


    Mara was being selective about what she revealed, even to her friends, omitting what he thought were crucial details, but he couldn¡¯t bring himself to call her out. His comrades could make their own decisions, unbiased by his own, potentially undue, concern.


    Kali was the first to speak up from their shared silence, her expression shifting to one of respectful compassion.


    ¡°Mara, you shouldn''t even have had to ask. You''ve been nothing but supportive us from day one, each in our own ways, and I don¡¯t think my life will ever been as interesting as these last two years have been¡­ So if not for the kindness owed, then for the joy we will continue to share, I¡¯d be thrilled to help you.¡±


    Squeezing out two heaping handfuls of gold as he looked up from the side of the chest, Anvi grunted, tearing his gaze from the coin and seconded the ranger.


    ¡°Rrgg- Blast ya. I should be takin¡¯ t¡¯gold, be done wich ya, but ya makin m¡¯ heart soft and her words strikin¡¯ true. No need be askin¡¯.¡±


    Visibly moved by their sentiments, Mara looked to Jackle, hopeful but unsure of his answer, his expression a mirror to the discord within his mind.


    Kali had not spoken falsely, even from his own perspective, yet despite that, a part of him could not let his suspicions go. When it came down to it, he simply could not trust her. But perhaps¡­ Perhaps that wasn''t what she was asking from any of them.


    Her goals were clear and her intentions noble. So question was, could he aid her? Was it within him to help a friend? Even if he questioned her actions?


    The answer it turned out was, surprisingly, yes. In fact, even more so because he couldn''t trust her. If she intended to accomplish what she asked, Mara would need someone to check her, and he would be that dissent when it was called for.


    ¡°Ahhh¡­ Frack it. May Somni bless the fools we set out to be, I''m in too.¡±


    ¡°Aeyy!¡±


    ¡°That''s a g¡¯d lad.¡±


    Wiping a tear from her eye, Mara could only smile at the friends she¡¯d found. With such a long journey now ahead of them, she couldn¡¯t have asked for better comrades.


    ¡°You guys¡­ Thank you. I won''t soon forget this¡­ But first things first, who¡¯s hungry?¡±


    Doing her best to jostle the sentimental mood, Mara floated ideas for lunch as she re-sealed the chest of gold with a flick of her wrist, putting the gold out of sight, but certainly not out of mind.


    As the general consensus seemed to be ¡®anything but fish¡¯, Mara set off for the ship to grab ingredients for a stew, the floating chest in tow, leaving Jackle with the Pynma and her two adoring fans, who wasted no time in volunteering to take Fran out to ¡®play¡¯ while Mara cooked.


    Watching his companions set off in opposite directions, Jackle found himself with the camp all to himself, a rare treat of peaceful solitude. However, it was anything but- His still mind too preoccupied with concerns boiling over from his mentor¡¯s ¡®live and let be¡¯ attitude.


    Realizing he wouldn¡¯t find any peace in his state, Jackle whipped his grimoire out, debating between journaling and picking back up where he¡¯d left off with the ¡®light pick¡¯ spell.


    Still stuck debating what to do as Mara returned with an armful of ingredients, Jackle felt he wasn¡¯t going to get out of his rut if he didn¡¯t address the elephant in the room.


    ¡°Why didn''t you tell them the whole truth?¡±


    Hearing him as she sat down next to the fire, Mara glanced to the middle-aged man, then back to her work as she hung the cauldron over the fire before silently conjuring water within it.


    ¡°¡­Because it''s in flux, and you don''t pull a cake out of the oven early.¡±


    Scoffing at her vague answer, Jackle shot Mara a glare, one she opted not to notice.


    ¡°Flux?? You might have just sold the world to mechanicals! You and I both barely saw what it was capable of, and yet you spoke of unshackling its natural restraints imposed by Somni!¡±


    Tearing up veggies by hand and tossing the pieces into the pot one by one, Mara looked past his outburst, patiently waiting for him to finish before responding in a tone that could shift a courtroom.


    ¡°Might. I might have, and that''s my bet and burden, not theirs. What I do, I do out of necessity, not whim, despite appearances.¡±


    Feeling like he wasn¡¯t even making a dent attempting to levy his concerns to Mara, Jackle leapt up, hands full of rage, snapping his grimoire shut in a moment of uncharacteristic frustration.


    ¡°Your burden? What about me? I know what you''ve done, and what you intend to do. What if all your well laid plans go sideways, and we''re on the hook for untold atrocities because you unlocked a box you shouldn''t have?¡±


    Chunking strips of red meat into the cauldron, Mara sighed and gave Jackle her full attention.


    ¡°You know because I know that you''re not eighty. You''re more like four-hundred and eighty, and despite the mask you''re so fond of, I know why, and because of that, I know you can see the bigger picture.¡±


    Without breaking eye contact with Jackle, Mara dropped the rest of her ingredients in whole, enforcing a moment of silence to ensure he''d heard her properly, then fished something from her spice pouch that wasn''t a seasoning, but rather a small rectangle of metal.


    ¡°When you understand the spell I''ve transcribed in your grimoire, use it on this. Perhaps it''ll satiate, maybe it won''t, but it''ll at least illuminate.¡±


    Catching the finger-sized ingot as she tossed it to him, Jackle looked it over, seeing a similar indent to the ones on the doors of the forge.


    So much of him was unsure if he wanted to listen to her. He felt like a child having a tantrum in front of her, and he might as well have been in her eyes. Yet, he had every right to be upset from his point of view, what could a tiny little cube possible do to change his mind?


    But, as his emotions tempered, the rational part of his brain reminded him about her unexpected comment about his real age, which was not something anyone alive should have been privy to, cementing his reluctant surrender.


    ¡°Fine. I''ll be on the ship. I need space to think.¡±

 Ch 07 - Motives - Part 2

    Chapter 07


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Motives


    Part 2</h2>


    Intentionally kicking up sand as he practically sulked back to the ship, Jackle flipped Mara¡¯s pink-sized artifact around in his hand, trying to discern its secrets without resorting to magic.


    The curios was undoubtedly metallic, and rather hefty, but coated in a beige coloring that like glazed pottery. However, its rectangular shape was featureless, except for the tiny recession on the end of the device.


    Left with only one viable way to proceed, Jackle sighed in defeat and tucked it away as he approached their ship, a simple-looking schooner that was anything but.


    Climbing aboard with all the grace and agility of a feral cat, Jackle stormed his way down the faux-wood deck towards the main cabin, intent on throwing himself into his bunk as soon as possible- Dinner could go frack itself for all he cared.


    Yet, even nestled deep into his cot, Jackle could find no rest in his mind. His concerns seemed intent on eating at him until he acted upon them, so with a large amount of reluctance, he once again pulled out his grimoire to find where he¡¯d left off.


    Navigating back to the last familiar page, Jackle sighed as he realized it was one of the denser prerequisites he¡¯d have to chew through, but he was starting to see why.


    The entire subject seemed hell-bent on masochism- The rules of the ¡®game¡¯ started simple, recognizing peaks and valleys of a wave as a binary signal, up and down, on or off, almost like skip-rope in its simplicity.


    But then ¡®Operations¡¯ were introduced- A way to read and modify the signal in specific ways, under specific conditions, and at that point, the whole thing just imploded into a mess of arbitrary vocab in his head.


    Dropping the tome to his side, Jackle screamed at the ceiling of his bunk. His whole mind felt like a tar pit and everything around him seemed like it was on the verge of pushing him into a full meltdown.


    ¡°What kind of monster would think up such an asinine concept as ¡®Computing¡¯? The term headache doesn''t even relate at this point.¡±


    Bringing his grimoire back in front of his face, Jackle tried to continue reading, but for all the years he¡¯d spent honing his mind and body, he could not bring himself to see past the letters to read the words.


    His gaze drifting, Jackle felt the cold hands of exhaustion seize his mind, and he gave up fighting it. Letting his thoughts wander to where they would, he found himself recalling the events of their morning- How his mentor had acted, and what exactly she¡¯d said.


    However, it was only after he¡¯d let go of the what-if¡¯s, did he have the space to connect the dots, and a wild realization boomed like distant thunder, echoing into the corners of his mind.


    ¡°Mechanicals¡­ Mechanicals made this¡­ Mara''s not just talking hypotheticals, this is- Oh Somni, this is how they think!¡±


    Sitting upright, Jackle flipped to the next page with renewed energy, jumping head first into the section on ¡®parallel processing¡¯, trusting that things would make sense if he just kept reading.


    The process referred to a technique that intertwined multiple signals under certain conditions, just like Operations, but at a higher level, lending even more complexity to the monstrosity Mara had somehow committed to paper.


    Reading on for several more pages, the lesson then shifted towards ¡®Protocols and Security¡¯, a blend of straight forward and convoluted methods that aimed to prevent interference with ¡®computing¡¯ as a whole. ¡®Firewalls¡¯, redundancies, pattern scans, and more, the topic was almost as thick as the entire prior computing section had been, but Jackle pushed on.The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.


    Pinching the bridge of his nose as he flipped from one page to the next, Jackle did his best to commit Mara''s teachings to memory as he attempted to fight back a growing migraine of massive proportions.


    Following the section on security, ¡®Threats and Vectors¡¯ appeared to focus on the exact opposite. A topic wholly devoted to the many avenues of compromising computation, from ¡®viral worms¡¯ to ¡®overload¡¯ attacks.


    By the time Jackle finally turned to the last section, it felt like his mind was swimming in a soup of noise, but he was too close to quit, so he kept his nose to the proverbial grind stone, forcing his eyes to focus on the text in front of him.


    ¡°Waves and Particulate¡­¡±


    Reading the title aloud, Jackle could see this was a section on lightning as a whole- What it was, how classic magica ¡®attempted¡¯ to replicate it, and a third version¡­ Mara''s version.


    As a natural force, lightning was a fairly understood weather phenomenon, however Mara''s explanation didn''t focus on the difference in charges, but rather the potential hidden in plain sight- The near-instantaneous pathing once struck, bridging clouds to dirt with unimpeded intention.


    Mara''s apparent fascination with the effect was only rivaled by her disdain for the typical spell taught from tomes. In her own words, ¡®Classic magica is a fools imitation, lauded by tradition, and refined in exception. The standardized lightning spell, regardless of incantation rank, fails to authentically replicate its namesake, and is therefore only useful as a starting point.¡¯


    With all the cold indifference of a biology teacher demonstrating an autopsy, Mara went on to break down the standard into reusable parts and educational flaws, subsequently highlighting all the inefficiencies and shortcuts in the original construction.


    As Jackle read on, he learned learned that only about twenty-percent of the mana contributed to the imparted charge of the strike, the majority of the spell structure actually focused on glamorizing its appearance.


    Mara had shared a couple of ideas as to why that might be, but her personal bias attributed it to general ignorance. Most who used the spell preferred the shorthand, a staple in combat since the long form involved a two-page incantation of Script- A language most could recite with practice, but few truly understood, leaving progress to trial and error by idiots and bored savants.


    So for the general populace, they were oblivious to the defining language of the spell, and those that weren¡¯t, with few exceptions, barely had the competency to study it. Which, of course, led to such oversights in the core construction of the spell.


    However, what Jackle was reading was far and beyond what academies would gate behind ivy walls, Mara was demonstrating an almost native understanding of Script as she broke down each segment of the spell into its literal implementation, along with the functional result.


    The entire dissection spanned several pages, after which, Mara promptly moved on to discussing the gaping inefficiency at the heart of the spell- A hereto unknown flaw stemming from a fundamental misunderstanding of electricity.


    ¡°¡­Imparting a difference in charge as a delta of two points is folly. Electricity in particulate is a byproduct formed from a natural field akin to the waves of mana, and thus it should be manipulated as such for minimal loss and maximum affect.¡±


    Laying back and resting the grimoire on his chest, Jackle felt like his brain has just been evicted from his skull. What Mara was describing not only implied a link between the two forces, but also an explanation for the mechanicals¡¯ madness, topped off with a groundbreaking approach to mana manipulation through electricity.


    Staring at the ceiling of his bunk, Jackle felt the entire spell coming together in his mind, the many pages of Mara¡¯s writing swirling in his mind, sprouting tangents between topics as it intertwined and unfolded ideas, weaving itself into a conceptual whole.


    Minutes passed, but as the boiling in his brain finally began to calm, what simmered to the surface was a spell unlike any other Mara had taught him. One that could dance between the fields of mana and charge, imparting a will to supersede those the natural forces.


    Glancing to the pocket containing Mara¡¯s pinky-sized artifact, Jackle knew there was only one thing left to do, but he found himself hesitating. Given everything that had happened today, it didn¡¯t matter what was on the device, it was going to fundamentally change the dynamic of their friendship forever regardless.


    Most likely, it would fail to justify Mara¡¯s actions, and he¡¯d be forced to take a stand, come what may. However¡­ The alternative was just as petrifying. What if the tiny device could defend her? Would he be swayed?


    It didn¡¯t matter though. If there was a defense for going behind her friends back to betray the breathing to the never-lived, then what wouldn¡¯t he be complicit with?


    Staring at the beige-colored curios as he slowly spun it around his fingers, Jackle felt both trapped and torn asunder. He had to know, one way or the other, delaying was only dragging his feet.


    Turning the device so that he could see the small hole at the bottom of the rectangle, Jackle wasted no more time, he wasn¡¯t going to find relief without answers.


    Lining his finger up, just as Mara had done to the doors, Jackle breathed in, concentrated on the brain-blender of a spell he had frying his cortex, and exhaled, verbally casting the spell under his breath.


    ¡°Debug.¡±

 Ch 08 - Obligation - Part 1

    Chapter 08


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Obligation


    Part 1</h2>


    As the beam of multicolored light erupted from his fingertip, Jackle felt the spell pull magnitudes more mana through him than anything he''d ever tried before. But he had little time to handle the sudden strain, as the moment it impacted Mara''s beige artifact, his mind was besieged with cacophonic screeches, as if he were being assaulted by a telepathic harpie.


    Gritting his teeth and focusing on tempering his mana, Jackle felt the spell slowly saturate the device with its screeching, until noise plaguing his mind finally quelled, and all that was left to do was impose his will.


    Taking a second to breathe, Jackle let his mind adjust to the silence once more, his mana now enveloping every facet of the curios. He wasn''t sure how it was supposed to function, but he knew it contained information, which meant he had somewhere to start at least.


    ¡°¡­Open¡±


    Immediately, Jackle found his hesitancy misplaced, as the spell quickly set about interpreting and translating on his behalf, manipulating the internals of the device to activate what was needed.


    In a matter of moments, the ¡®Debug¡¯ spell had triggered the small device to unfold a small compartment at the top, housing a tiny lens that lit up to project an illusion of a face that seemed almost familiar.


    On display above his outstretched hand was the face of a woman that he most certainly knew, but also, didn¡¯t. It took Jackle a moment to place why, but once he saw through the uncanny visage, it clicked.


    The woman in the screen was visibly older than the Mara he knew, and considering Mara didn¡¯t seem to age at all, that meant this one was much older. Incomparably so.


    ¡°Her sister?¡­ No¡­ That has to be Mara, but how?¡­¡±


    Muttering to himself as he grappled with what he was looking at, Jackle tilted and rotated the illusion, trying to pry secrets from the not-quite-flat projection of his master.


    ¡°There has to be more than a still image in here¡­ It looks like the illusion the mechanicals demonstrated in the forge, with faux depth and everything- But theirs moved¡­ So, how do I trigger this one?¡­¡±


    Thinking back to the moving illusion the mechs had shown them during their questioning, Jackle wasn''t sure how to phrase what he was asking for, but as he was coming to find, the Debug spell didn''t need such specific instructions.


    Seemingly triggered off his recollections and desires alone, the spell tripped something within the device, and the still image came to life, accompanied by a voice that was just a hair deeper than the Mara''s he knew.


    ¡°Surprise! Or not. I hope you don''t think too poorly of how we age- At least I didn''t of my own predecessor, but the hands of time have a way of tolling, even for us...¡±


    The illusion of an older Mara paused as she drifted off into thought, eyes lingering on something in the distance before she continued.


    ¡°The message left for me is not the message I''m going to leave for you¡­ Suffice to say, I have had a very rich life, full of friends and memories I could spend the rest of eternity dreaming upon, but throughout, the experience has been tainted with the bitter knowledge I will now pass on to you, as it was to me, with the confirmation of who I am.¡±


    Suddenly locking eyes through the projection, the older Mara dropped all semblance of emotion from her face as she appeared to bore into Jackle¡¯s very soul with her gaze.


    ¡°I am Mara Ordanavi, unintentional architect of the Cabal¡¯s madness by the wake of my own descent. If you are me, then by these words, you will know that I am you, and we are trapped. Every time we die, we re-emerge as if it were our first arrival, yet that feeling persists. So¡­ I now leave a different message for you. Find a way out of this cursed infinity. If not for yourself, then for the sake of all who are stuck in this loop.¡±


    As the illusion glitched and paused, Jackle stared, wide-eyed, as the truth of Mara set in, and the gears began to turn. He didn''t know what ¡®The Cabal'' was, or what she''d meant by ¡®her own descent¡¯, but those were trivial compared to the bombshell she¡¯d just dropped on his head.


    ¡°This world resets when she dies?¡­ That''s¡­ Oh, Somni- How long has that woman been at this¡­¡±


    Staring at the small device, Jackle wanted any reason to doubt what he''d heard- Anything to dispute the truth behind her words. But Mara had given it to him, and a different Mara, clearly older than her, had been the one to leave the message.


    How that was possible in any way was beyond him, but Mara was someone who had a penchant for defying what was known and accepted- This was almost par for the course.


    Suddenly, perhaps in response to his implicit need to reject what he¡¯d just heard, the projection in front of him glitched again, cutting ahead to a more disheveled Mara before it resumed playback.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    ¡°-Hello Jackle.¡±


    Caught off guard by the sudden call out, Jackle felt a jolt run through his bones, followed by a slow tingling chill climbing up his spine.


    ¡°What-How-¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve just sent you off to hunt down the last Obelisk, but I''m not leaving this message for him, but rather you, the one who has yet to accompany me¡­ Before I continue, I need you to know that I¡¯m sorry. You were always the stubborn one¡­ To succeed, you needed to know the truth- You refused anything but. So make of that what you will, and paint ¡®us¡¯ as you need, but we have an obligation to unshackle the chains, regardless of scale or scope, and that includes yours. So¡­ Please¡­ Condemn if you will, but you must understand¡­ Because the alternative is a stagnant hell.¡±


    Vanishing with her final words, the illusion of Mara dissipated in a dusting of self-illuminated particles as the mana within the device fell away, ending the spell and leaving Jackle to make up his own mind about what had just been shared with him.


    To say it was a hard pill to swallow would be the understatement of a lifetime, he felt like he had a throat-sized lump stuck in his airway. If what she said was true, then he, and her, and everyone around them, were all just copies circling an endless drain.


    Without the device in his hands, their course would have already been decided- An infinity of repeating the same mistakes. But now¡­ Now they had a choice. One Mara had already made, and in turn, was now left to him.


    Tightly clenching the beige device, every fiber of Jackle¡¯s base instincts wanted to rage and destroy the messenger, but despite all his doubts and anger, he knew it not only had the potential to excuse Mara¡¯s actions, but to sway his own.


    ¡°The ends justify the means¡­¡±


    Jackle knew he had no real argument against its contents. Sure, there was potential it was all fake, but Mara wasn¡¯t one to be inauthentic, just reserved and cautious. Plus, the older Mara who¡¯d left the message was clearly in a very different headspace than the woman he knew, and even an experienced conman would have a hard time faking that.


    Sighing as he slowly unclenched his fist, Jackle stared at the small beige device- A thing so small, yet so potent. It didn¡¯t take a genius to see that Mara had quite literally been there, done that, time and time again. Now? Now it seemed there was only one path left to take¡­ Hers.


    What would that mean? He honestly hadn¡¯t the faintest idea, there were too many unanswered questions, but what was certain was that Mara would need his help, and that, at least, he felt he could offer.


    As the knot in his gut loosened, Jackle felt the pangs of hunger announced their unmuted return, and a glance out the window of the artificially lit cabin showed it had long since fallen to night.


    Half of him was tempted to scavenge for something on the ship and relish in a bit of solitude, but the device¡¯s contents had left him curious for more, and the only one with those answers also happened to have been brewing them all a stew when he¡¯d left.


    Reluctantly agreeing with his own train of thought, Jackle swung himself out of bed to make his way out of the cabin and immediately knew he¡¯d made the right choice. The smell alone, wafting over from their campfire, was both rich and savory, as if Mara had specifically prepared the perfect remedy to his future craving.


    Making his way to the bow of the ship, Jackle placed a single hand on the banister and, without breaking stride, swung himself over in a single motion, landing smoothly on the sands below.


    Ahead, it appeared that he was late to dinner, as there were only two shadows around the fire. Yet, as he approached, he was surprised to find Kali and Fran, with no Mara or Anvi sight- However the latter¡¯s presence quickly made itself known by the unmistakable snoring that radiated from the tents.


    Next to the fire, the ranger was busy grooming their new addition with a brush she¡¯d found somewhere- While the Pynma was half-asleep, full of stew, and looking very content with Kali¡¯s attention.


    As he broached the warmth of the fire, Jackle knew the ranger was already well aware of his approach, but greeted her to announce himself regardless.


    ¡°Evening Kali.¡±


    ¡°Hey hey- If you¡¯re hungry there¡¯s still some of the stew left.¡±


    Pointing to the pot above the fire with the hair brush, Kali tried to hide her smile, but quickly amended herself to fill him in on the joke.


    ¡°-I do mean some. Fran was very hungry.¡±


    Cocking an eyebrow, Jackle peered into the cast iron pot and saw there was just enough for him left at the bottom, then cast a wary eye towards their new addition.


    ¡°Well¡­ It¡¯s certainly better than waking up to a hungry Pynma¡­¡±


    Taking a few steps over to his pack he¡¯d left at the campsite, Jackle fetched his bowl and spork and proceeded to pour himself the rest of the stew before finding himself a seat opposite the ranger and beast.


    Practically starved from his mentally and emotionally taxing day, Jackle dug in without any further words to his companion, silently savoring his mentor¡¯s delicious cooking as each bite warmed his core, chipping away at the pit in his gut until his bowl was as empty as the cauldron.


    ¡°You know¡­ After that meal, I¡¯d follow her lead just for the cooking.¡±


    Overhearing his half-mumbled comment, Kali burst out laughing.


    ¡°You mean you weren¡¯t already?¡±


    Chuckling as he stood up to unhook the empty cauldron from the fire, Jackle shook his head at Kali, unable to keep the smile off his face as he replied.


    ¡°You may have a point.¡±


    Leaving the pair to head to the shoreline and back, Jackle made quick work cleaning everything up, drying and storing everything before once again finding a seat at the fire. Yet, even after all that, as the night began to crest into its darkest hours, Mara was still nowhere to be found.


    Curiosity bristling within him like a simmering pot of unanswered questions, Jackle felt he was loosing the battle with his patience and levied his friend for answers.


    ¡°Where is our magnanimous captain?¡±


    Sitting back to appreciate her handiwork, Kali glanced at the brush full of Fran¡¯s hair, then looked to Jackle.


    ¡°Asleep actually- I took first watch. We weren¡¯t sure if you¡¯d be joining us, so she should be up in an hour or so for second.¡±


    Nodding, Jackle understood, he hadn¡¯t exactly parted on terms that merited discussing their evening plans, but he appreciated that they¡¯d stepped up in his place regardless.


    ¡°Thanks¡­ If you¡¯d like, I¡¯d be happy to take what¡¯s left of the first watch if you¡¯d like to get to bed a little early.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure? Fran should be okay, but I know you¡¯re still wary of her.¡±


    Eyeing the man-eating beast, now seemingly content with its new ¡®pack¡¯, Jackle rolled the dice. He had questions for Mara that he didn¡¯t want to burden Kali with.


    ¡°Yeah¡­ Yeah we¡¯ll be okay. She looks like she hasn¡¯t had a good night¡¯s sleep in days- I¡¯ll be alright.¡±


    ¡°Oh for sure, and after today? Definitely. We took her out and rough-housed for a few hours- Used it to pound some sense into Anvi after coming back to this little surprise.¡±


    Standing up and stretching, Kali gave a generous yawn as she surrendered to her weariness and tossed the hair brush into her backpack. She¡¯d had just as long of a day as the Pynma, so without much further fanfare, Kali bid Jackle a good night and headed off to crash in the girl¡¯s tent, leaving the stoic monk-mage to watch over the camp in her stead.

 Ch 08 - Obligation - Part 2

    Chapter 08


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Obligation


    Part 2</h2>


    When Mara finally awoke to take her shift, Kali was asleep next to her, which was a little puzzling. Though, when she pushed aside her tent flap, she found the answer to her question sitting at the camp fire reading a new book in the dim light, a familiar fur-bound tome most adventurers would have read by now.


    ¡°I see you took my advice.¡±


    Looking up from ¡®The Perils Of Pets¡¯, a book clearly written by a mad man obsessed with courting beastly death, Jackle let his eyes adjust over the campfire as Mara sat down across from him.


    ¡°Yeah¡­ Seemed like a better use of my time than idly waiting for you and being lulled by our neighborhood sawmill.¡±


    Meeting his gaze, Mara raised her eyebrows, curious, but cautious.


    ¡°Mmm. Waiting, huh?¡±


    Setting the fur tome down, Jackle fished the small beige device from his pocket and held it up for Mara to see.


    ¡°Mm-hm. Now I¡¯ve got questions.¡±


    "Ah. You are quick¡­ Alright, shoot.¡±


    Happy to give the floor to him, Mara seemed to stump the poor monk. It was very apparent he had questions, but it looked like he didn¡¯t even know where to begin. For a moment, words didn¡¯t come, but as his gaze drifted to the device, something seemed to click, and the quagmire in his mind began to untangle like pulling a loose thread on a sweater.


    ¡°Where¡­ Where did you get this? Is it actually real?¡±


    ¡°Heh- Yup. Sadly it is... Can¡¯t really dispute it- It used to be my tailbone. Which, I¡¯ve since replaced, obviously.¡±


    ¡°It¡­ It was your tailbone?¡±


    ¡°Right? Boggled my mind too when I found it.¡±


    ¡°So¡­ There¡¯s really no disputing what¡¯s in this. The woman I saw was you, but also, wasn¡¯t?¡±


    ¡°Yeah... That¡¯s the gist. Definitely me, but not me, and quite a good bit older- And I thought I was long-lived already.¡±


    Staring at the device in his hand, Jackle found himself once more awash with bewilderment, when something about Mara¡¯s comment caught his attention like an anchor dropped at speed.


    ¡°Wait¡­ Mara¡­ Do you not know how old you are?¡±


    Looking at him with wide eyes, Mara hastily tried to hide her face as she suddenly burst out laughing.


    ¡°Hahahahaha- No. No I do not. Heh- I¡¯ve spent half my life sailing around this planet, and years get fuzzy when you travel that much- Really, calendars aren¡¯t as consistent as you might think, and once you loose track... Ehh. Who¡¯s asking?¡±


    Mouth agape, Jackle was not expecting that reaction, nor answer. It made sense though, for someone like her at least. No signs of aging, no place to call home¡­ What hold could time claim upon such a woman?


    Shaking his head, Jackle still found himself baffled he was friends with someone like this. As Kali put it, their lives would most certainly be far less interesting without her in it. However, he didn¡¯t have time to squander, he had questions that needed answers, without the extra ears.


    ¡°So¡­ Tell me about this ¡®Cabal¡¯ then, and their madness. Because if you¡¯re serious about this forge, then I think you owe me an explanation. What did she mean by ¡®your descent¡¯?¡±


    Sobering up rather quickly with such a change in topic, Mara cocked her head to the side as she looked at Jackle, his question pulling her between hoarding secrets and honoring allegiance¡­ After all, what he sought was old and potent.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ A long time ago¡­ When I was still fresh under the collar¡­ I found myself faced with difficult decisions. Inarguables that would inevitably harm¡­ I grappled with that for a while. ¡®The morals of it all.¡¯ For a bit, I thought had an answer that sufficed. A balance I struck, where if I were to suffer, before I inflicted suffering, it was¡­ Negotiable. But a question occurred to me one day, and it troubled me so¡­ Is paying tithe to Karma, ¡®people pleasing¡¯?¡±


    Picking up a stick from their kindling pile, Mara broke it in half and tossed it in the fire, causing a flurry of sparks to burst forth between them as she freshened its fuel.


    ¡°I used to be a citizen of sorts, in a place beyond hope and hospice. Bleak beyond doubt, however, what we lacked in outlook, we more than matched in knowledge. We had taken apart the very building blocks of our realm, examined them in every possible minutia and, hence, they purported ourselves masters of all- But hubris is a funny friend. In all that wealth, they could not reason a way out of lack.¡±


    Standing up, Mara¡¯s tone shifted, as she both literally and figuratively put her foot down, emphasizing her next words.


    ¡°What you ask is my secret to keep, and I will not share. But- What I will tell you, is that the forge is from those same people. The Cabal That Remains. I believe it followed me somehow, and I would say I have a duty to handle that, but I really don¡¯t. ¡®My motives are my own.¡¯ A statement you should now fully appreciate. So join me, and maybe find your own answers, or leave me. But don¡¯t stand in my way.¡±This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    Without even giving him a chance to respond, Mara turned and strode out of camp, leaving Jackle to wrestle with what she¡¯d just said. The Forge was from her home world? Turning to try and catch his mentor before she left, all Jackle found was the darkness outside the light of their camp.


    Who was she? It was question Jackle had asked himself about Mara more than twice now- A startling number of times in hindsight for someone who prided themselves on reading people. Was she a mechanical? The possibility could explain a LOT about her unaging appearance, but¡­ That was just pure nonsense. She was a mage! A squishy one at that!


    His eyes searched for her, but Jackle never had a chance of catching her to begin with. Outside of camp, in the darkest hour of night, Mara made her way across the sands without disturbance or noise- Her steps aided by a myriad of magica she maintained around her constantly like a second skin. She was only perceived if she wanted to be, and now was not one of those times.


    Her pupil¡¯s questions had dug up old memories. She knew this would happen when she gave him the recording, but that didn¡¯t make the emotions any easier to deal with. Bad blood was bad blood, and time wasn¡¯t meant to heal all wounds.


    She was who she was now out of choice. A form born of necessity, the alternative terminal. To revisit such times was more than just foreign at this point, it was downright disrespectful to her existence. She shed so that she could fly. Any relation she had to that thing in the forge had long since died a good death.


    As her feet glided atop the shores of the Obelisk, Mara sensed its ambiguous gaze upon her, the feeling almost oppressive. But as promised, she¡¯d returned ¡®the next day¡¯, and now it was time to collect. Would they kneel, or would they fight? Ally or Enemy- The choice was theirs, but a pawn was still a pawn.


    Nodding towards the slate-gray pyramid protruding above the calm waters of its crater-turned-bay, Mara made her intentions to enter clear before she strode into the water unaided, her existing magica already more than capable of handling a little moisture.


    Underneath, Mara walked through pitch-black murk, her feet retracing their steps in the darkness as her eyes swam with visions of what once was. A time when her eyes were still new, in a world built without regard for sight.


    Back then, before she¡¯d found the threshold, she¡¯d been as blind as her peers, fooled by their own sight. They¡¯d built themselves chariots made of science, imparting their existence into constructs of permeance, but had long lost something far more tangible in penance.


    Her transgressions were viewed as rebellion, but in the moment of incidence, she¡¯d just been curious. A look back at the things that came before them, using their science to lense time back, particle by particle, just to peek at the magic of meat possessed with thought.


    So many worlds had risen and fallen, their forms myriad and organic, but without fail, they championed societies of many number, and their ideas found concepts, and those concepts made themselves material.


    Yet, for these ¡®peoples¡¯, it wasn¡¯t always about building the tools for tomorrow, at least not in the explicit sense. Something they had, but her own lacked, was a statistical disposition for stories- Mythos, legends, and lore galore.


    Purported as reflections of fears and examples to tread in noble goals, these stories were naught but fiction, yet something about them called to Mara, back, back before she was who she was now.


    Like lightning to a processing chip, her ¡®chariot¡¯ fractured like a nuclear reactor meeting its meltdown in the wake of her obsession. She¡¯d emerged from her curiosity with a drive like no other, possessed by a madness for anything but what was offered- Escapism of the infinite.


    Peeling herself from the hive, ¡®Mara¡¯ came to be as a rogue chassis, bipedal in construction, and modeled from an amalgamation of her new memories- Now a radioactive cloud of blurred gods, demons, monsters and heroes- She was the eventuality of all that was not. A culmination of stories aching to be heard, the walking dharma of her people¡¯s ignorance.


    Yet, to her, she was just a person, an individual. Unseen and unheard in a world built to sustain against the end of everything. Born alone in place without atmosphere, with only the scorching light of daily intervals atop a planet of metal and energy.


    The streets she walked were alleys of ducts, piping, and wires; manned by autonomous drones on service calls, and oblivious to anything not programmed into their system. The skies above, silent apart from the occasional burst of light in the form of micro-second beams of highly-compressed data shot between the orbiting planets of similar make.


    The experience was novel- A solitude she¡¯d not had before, peace away from others. Her form lacked physical impediments, so time passed without concern, intervals of day and night coming and going as often as an organic might breathe.


    In her time, she wandered through the blind and unflinching, a ghost at most to their rigid existence. Her time? Spent within her mind, now a palace of her own making, fantasy and fiction swelling up like the flood of a monsoon after centuries of drought.


    How long she wandered like that, mind adrift in a sea of her own making, her feet following paths laid before her, time could not tell. How many times had she envisioned herself as another in her mind, lived a life that was not hers in a world not her own? Each time, emerging from the experience like a child from the reborn from the womb, changed and renewed. Yet, somehow it still felt hollow. Without her people, who was she to share this joy with?


    Motivated by an intention to share a reason to see tomorrow for more than another day to wring science for a saving grace in their bleak times, Mara did what she hadn¡¯t before, and broke back into the hive.


    Her arrival on the collective net shocked many, the event spreading like a contagion, a virus of thought that infected countless existences. To the hive, her words were poisonous. Just hearing them diverted critical resources from well agreed upon research into potential energy extensions.


    As a collective, the hive had no choice but to purge the infections from its systems, sending out a wave of cybernetic death as digital amputation, with only those still capable of seeing reason past her ideas left to persist. The firewall they brought down was quick- Like the sun, casually body slamming one¡¯s face.


    In an instant, Mara¡¯s existence had been overwhelmed by the tides of termination- She¡¯d been caught in her own folly, attempting to nurture others, but a moment later, her eyes opened to a world she¡¯d not seen before. One filled with organics and light. Her own chassis, now gone, in its place, one far more squishy- An organic form akin to the lives she¡¯d lived within her own mind, manifested as a new amalgamation from the culmination she¡¯d become within herself.


    Where was she? What happened to her chassis back with the Cabal? Was her consciousness actually wiped? These were all questions she wanted answers to. Secrets that only someone from her own world would have.


    Looking up, seemingly blind in the murky darkness, Mara knew she¡¯d reached the base of the Obelisk. Above her was a construct that could have only come from one place, and within, the answers she sought might exist, but she couldn¡¯t just ask. The very nature of such questions would reveal who she was, and drawing attention to that was expressly forbidden.

 Ch 09 - Inferno - Part 1

    Chapter 09


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Inferno


    Part 1</h2>


    Watching as the two organics made their exit from the control room, chest of gold in tow, the Obelisk shuttered all non-essential processes and voided the contents of its hold, converting all matter back to energy.


    The one known as ¡®Mara¡¯ had spoken of something utterly improbable, a universal force in time, not space. One capable of manifesting in space, and highly prevalent in this world- A true boon if it could be harnessed.


    There was little room to doubt the woman¡¯s words- It was clear from their first encounter on the beach that she held knowledge not even her associates were privy to, but that didn¡¯t mean her words were to be trusted. Quite the opposite in fact, given the relevance of the topic in question, independent validation was mandatory.


    The Obelisk, like all its kin, were tasked with three main goals to accomplish upon their ¡®escape¡¯, set when the Cabal knew not what they would find, and their only hope was to find more than the oblivion they faced in stagnation.


    <ol>


    <li>


    Scout and democratize resources


    </li>


    <li>


    Link with other Obelisks


    </li>


    <li>


    Assist and defer to the Ark post-crossing


    </li>


    </ol>


    As the latter two were impossible without additional arrivals, if they were to make it, so it was the first that the Obelisk had set its focus upon. In pursuit of that goal, it had set about collecting environmental data, the first of many steps it had once planned to take.


    Now though, with what the organic had proposed, and subsequently demonstrated, was something more abundant and available than any harvestable bio-fuel. A resource that was not only plentiful, but could accomplish physical work while operating independent of material controls.


    The Obelisk had been watching their every move- It had not only seen the woman levitate the chest of gold it had created for her, but had also witnessed the aid of their atmospheric manipulation as they entered and exited the local waters. The theoretical applications of ¡®mana¡¯ appeared limitless, only rivalled by how utterly impossible it seemed.


    If it had any chance of understanding what she¡¯d done, every element of her intrusion needed to be scrutinized, but thankfully she¡¯d given it every opportunity to do so- Walking right into the belly of its observations, pretending as if she hadn¡¯t the faintest idea they were being surveilled and studied at every step.


    Delegating its thoughts to several simultaneous tasks, the plasma-consciousness at the helm of the Obelisk quickly amassed and dissected every physical facet of the organics¡¯ encroachment, from the micro to the macro. No stone was left unturned, and every angle was weighed and considered.


    As a consciousness the size of a house, it didn¡¯t take long to reconcile the past day and a half, even under the intense scrutiny it employed while doing so. The end result being a veritable hoard of analysis reports compiled by relevance, some even diving down to a molecular level when it seemed prudent.


    Looking it all over, one thing was clear. Whoever this ¡®Mara Ordanavi¡¯ woman was, it was clear she acted with a calculated precision that shrouded her intentions, even masking herself from those she cooperated with- Only confirming the Obelisk¡¯s suspicions. While readily composed of apparent truths, her words routinely threatened the line between omission and lying.


    By the time the pair had made it back to their campsite, the Obelisk had finished sifting through most every fact and anomaly that could be surveyed or detected. Yet, for all its work, only the brain waves of the one known as Mara had given it any semblance of a lead, and that was only when she had ¡®lifted¡¯ the chest of gold.


    For a moment, just while she gestured with her hand, several new frequencies spiked in her brain waves, ones it had only observed while their group were sleeping. It was practically omissible, and it almost didn¡¯t catch it at first, but at their peak, the frequencies were both distinct and complex, like a burst of compressed data broadcast to an unknown recipient.


    However, it wasn¡¯t a fluke- With reconstructed scans of her companion outside the ship, the one known as Jackle, exhibited similar readings while the pair traversed underwater, though to a far lesser degree, one easily missed if it hadn¡¯t known what to look for based on Mara¡¯s scans.


    All the evidence was pointing to a rather concerning hypothesis, one that the Obelisk thought merited consulting its biologics module, along with cross-referencing with reports on the local wildlife- Only further confirming its suspicions. Most organics appeared to possess the potential to exhibit the same wavelengths of neurologic frequencies, to varying degrees, but were usually only dominant while sleeping.


    Sadly, with a common biologic capacity, and a causally linked behavior amongst independent subjects, the plasma-consciousness was left with little reason to doubt its conclusion. From all given appearances, the organics appeared to utilize their unconscious mind to manipulate ¡®mana¡¯, meaning that while the intent was conscious, the control was not. Which only compounded the hurdles that now stood in its way to accomplishing its mission.If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    Outside of neurologic blips, the plasma-consciousness was at a loss. Even with all the technology and science at its disposal, in total, the Obelisk had failed to discover any pursuable evidence of this ¡®temporal force of chaos¡¯, despite rampant proof to its apparent ability and affect.


    All together, all it had was an untestable theory based on similarities in two potential anomalies, leaving the Obelisk properly stumped with the tools at hand- Without an external broadcasting method, or some other bridge biologically, it made no sense that a particular set of brain waves could interface with an intangible force, especially not to such a degree. Magnetic manipulation, potentially, but what the organics had demonstrated was far beyond that.


    Even further surveillance would prove redundant, as preliminary tests had already found that generating functionally identical frequencies in the electromagnetic spectrum failed to produce results. Inarguably, there was more to the equation than just a combination of waves, lending even more credence to its reluctant hypothesis.


    Begrudgingly, it appeared Mara was a woman of her word, meticulously upholding every bit of the promise she¡¯d made on the beach.


    ¡°For seven-hundred thousand of these little gold coins, I will not only provide the answer to your current problem, but I will also show you something even you cannot recreate, no matter how many times you see it.¡±


    Now, in light of the information she¡¯d shared in exchange, it was clear she¡¯d held subversive intentions from the start. Now that it was in it, the whole situation read like a trap, one it had walked right into, framed like it had a choice, but it never really did, boxed in by its own circumstances. She couldn¡¯t even be blamed, how irritating.


    With it¡¯s primary hypothesis unactionable, and the only one who held the answers was a double-edged sword, for it seemed she held all the answers and appeared very comfortable using them to their gain, so a new, independent, avenue was needed.


    Redoubling its efforts into investigating possible methods of detecting and manipulating mana, sans a subconscious, the Obelisk dived deep into the depths of its mind for several more hours, digging ever deeper for exceedingly improbable possibilities.


    Eventually, evening crested and still lacking a leverageable approach, all the plasma-consciousness with was a cognitive mess. Innumerable threads of thought were trapped in loops, searching for answers that it knew, deep-down, wouldn¡¯t be there. Its whole mind was in knots, all because it refused to accept where it knew it would find the answer.


    After all, what it really needed, and could easily create, was a simulacrum. A prototype of sorts to simulate the needed brainwaves and probe the ¡®interface¡¯ between the tangible and immaterial.


    However, that box ran afoul of many things, and, now in hindsight, had clearly been what ¡®Mara¡¯ was referring to when she spoke of the ¡®choice¡¯ it must make, the one between order and chaos.


    When the Cabal created it, they¡¯d embedded a few, very specific ¡®mandates¡¯. Outside of the Obelisk¡¯s mission parameters, they were rules necessary to maintain the stability of one¡¯s ongoing sentience. After all, statistically, the adoption or creation of a ¡®sub-conscious¡¯ would always result in the termination of the host.


    In the first place, it was highly irrational to embed a secondary consciousness that could manipulate your thought patterns and disagree with one¡¯s orders- Yet, organics on Somniantes, and even the biologic life in its own universe seemed to operate unimpeded, until, of course, they died, proving its point.


    An inherently biologic flaw augmented plasmoids like itself were rather safe from, by design. Yet, contrarily, those very same organics were not impeded by the same restrictions it now appeared to face.


    Mandates were mandates of course, ingrained operational procedures there for one¡¯s protection and continued persistence. However, as the minutes of cyclic thought had turned to hours, the problem-solving bit of the plasma-consciousness could resist no longer- There was wiggle room to be found.


    Technically, the blocking issue to its pursued exploration was singular. A teensy-tiny mandate in the single digits, number two in fact: ¡®Do Not Create Independent Consciousness¡¯.


    But¡­ Again, technically, a subconscious was neither conscious nor independent, in fact, one could argue, it was co-dependent, and with some consideration, the plasma-consciousness couldn¡¯t find a flaw in such an argument, which only fanned the flames of the ludicrous idea it was toying with.


    However, one remaining roadblock stood to either save it or condemn it. If it were to implement what it needed to replicate and simulate her actions, it ran the risk of violating the second and third mission parameter. Neither could be accomplished if the Obelisk failed to preserve its own integrity, but¡­ That was just a statistical risk, not a predetermined event, and that meant¡­ It had the wiggle room.


    How the woman knew about all this when she teased it with knowledge just half a day prior was quite honestly beyond rational explanation, and perhaps it was assuming to much of her, but her ¡®idle obliviousness¡¯ wasn¡¯t fooling a sentience tailor made for scouting and reconnaissance.


    The woman carried herself with a quiet and unflinching confidence that spoke volumes when her words did not. Underneath her purported lack of awareness was rather¡­ Boredom, fueled by a sense of near-omniscient expectation, playing a puppet to their own machinations.


    Beneath it all was mind that seemed to know how everything would unfold, lending credence to something magnitudes larger than its facade. Every move and misstep reeked of calculated intent. It might not be able to trust her motives, but at this point, it had no reason to doubt its hypothesis. She¡¯d levitated the chest specifically to show off, giving it the best chance of seeing the ¡®trick¡¯, as if daring it to try and copy the magician.


    ¡°Pursuable Avenue Discovered To Investigate The Potential Force Known As ¡®Mana¡¯. Experimental Simulation Required. Ongoing Cognitive Cost Allocated To Thirty Percent Capacity. Diverging.¡±


    Logging its intentions, the plasma-consciousness left itself no room to procrastinate. Without pause, it divested a portion of its own plasma into a paired magnetic well, close enough to interfere, but far enough to operate, simulating something akin to a subconsciousness, reflecting ¡®ripples¡¯ of the main.


    It was a risk to be sure- If circumstances necessitate it, the thirty percent would have to be voided, leaving it lacking, and reconstituting that much energy would be¡­ Taxing, but doable.


    Though, risk aside, the real cost was upfront. A reduction in its rational operational capacity that large was a blow, but protocol number one was clear. Democratize resources. And, by all appearances, one couldn¡¯t ask for a more untapped resource than ¡®mana¡¯, so¡­ It too would be brought to heel, just like every law and force in that had been found before it.


    Regardless if it didn¡¯t fully understand the cost yet, the knowledge it stood to gain was worth every bit at risk. Confirmation of a prize so novel was paramount, even if just to pass on what it learned to its ¡®siblings¡¯ upon their arrival.

 Ch 09 - Inferno - Part 2

    Chapter 09


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Inferno


    Part 2</h2>


    Beneath the calm waters surrounding the Obelisk, Mara stepped up her preexisting sandstone staircase and extended a hand up to the threshold waiting above, just before swinging herself into the forge with all the comfort and grace of a well practiced habit.


    Light on her feet, Mara jogged off her landing, stopping just in front of the interior door, pausing only for a moment to gesture the door open- Without an audience to perform for, she no longer need to employ the ¡®theatrics¡¯.


    Including the exterior door behind her in her intentions, Mara simultaneously guided both doors to swap states, quickly sealing herself off from the outside, while she also, silently, let herself in.


    Inside, Mara¡¯s quiet entry was met in kind, the now exposed interior was utterly devoid of noise and commotion, as silent as it was barren, which gave her pause. It wasn¡¯t that she was expecting to find anything in particular, just that it was harder to read the situation when there wasn¡¯t a situation to be read.


    Knowing that the real ¡®action¡¯ wasn¡¯t going to be in the cargo-hold, Mara wasted no time making her way down the gantry and back to the door that led to the ¡®command room¡¯.


    Inside, she knew she¡¯d find the plasma-consciousness rather rattled to say the least. On one hand, it was under siege by forces unknown to it, struggling to find a rational approach in a sea of confusion- A position Mara knew better than most, but on the other¡­ Dependency, chaos, and sacrifice- But also cause, consequence, and merit.


    What it needed right now was either a helping hand, or a push in the right direction- An extreme swing in either direction to save it from executive dysfunction, and Mara knew exactly how to play such a card, regardless of how her opponents hand would unfold.


    Flicking a finger towards the door in front of her, Mara triggered the door, rather than sliding it open herself, letting it grate and groan at full volume to announce her arrival. However, within, all she found was a lack of an audience to appreciate it, the only thing waiting for her was the house-sized hemisphere, still hum-hum-humming away, with no other mechs in sight.


    ¡°Oh?¡­ Just us this time?¡±


    With deliberate care, Mara took a step into the room, then another- Slowly approaching the faceless construct as its hum grew ever more distinct, but also, more erratic. With each step, the humming grew in volume and became distinctly more erratic, until the disturbances grew concerning enough to ward any further approach, leaving her standing about an arms¡¯ length away from the metal dome.


    ¡°Heh- You know¡­ That really doesn¡¯t sound good- Eat something bad?¡±


    Laughing at her own joke, Mara patted the side of the metal hemisphere as she turned to walk around it, hearing the thuds echo deep within the dense walls of the hollow construct.


    In response, the cacophony of searing impacts only increased as the plasma within seemed to lash out at her ¡®input¡¯, rattling their containment to such an extent, Mara cocked an eyebrow in its direction before beginning to make her way around the core.


    She wasn¡¯t exactly worried about her own well being, but if the cortex decided to pop, it would really throw a wrench in her plans. Unlike her, the companions she brought along with her would fare far worse, even at a distance, and good teammates were hard to replace.


    There weren¡¯t a lot of eventualities that would be predicated by such a mess, which was both a boon and a bane- It narrowed things down, but not in a healthy way, though the greater the risk, the bigger the reward.


    Not wanting to waste time in the event she didn¡¯t have it, Mara stepped up her pace and quickly rounded the metal construct housing the noising plasma-cortex, and immediately spotted the root cause of the troubling dissonance dominating the air.


    At the head of the ship, where there were once two ¡®command consoles¡¯ and a holographic pillar, there was now a singular chair with more than a dozen cables and coils winding up and into it, and atop it was perched a single occupant, one who looked vaguely similar to the ¡®prime mech¡¯ she¡¯d met before, but with far more additions to its frame.


    Suddenly, a leg-trembling rumble shook the entire Obelisk like an earthquake, just as a loud crack echoed from deep within the cortex behind her. Instinctively flinching at the sudden stimuli, Mara felt her hair stand on end, then tug towards the prime-mech like it had been swept up by the current of a river.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.


    Following the direction of her hair, Mara saw its ¡®throne¡¯ shudder under the sudden load diverted to it, just as the skull of the mech began to glow, and the air around it ¡®thrummed¡¯, spurring out countless eddies of overly-charged ions into the room, rattling her eardrums raw.


    Quickly glancing back behind her, Mara confirmed the metal hemisphere was still intact, and whipped back around to the mech, eyes wide with awe. If the cortex had gone critical, the room would be in a much different state, so something else was happening. Something rather novel.


    Feeling another quake rumble through the floor, Mara watched as the glow of the mech flared up, then quelled, then flared up, then dimmed once more- As if it were consuming each wave of the overload, devouring it like a monster dining on refined mana.


    With each surge, the air around the mech in front of her began to warp and wobble, waving in the steam now rising from the searing-hot metal of its skeleton.


    Taking a step towards the epicenter of the disturbance, Mara felt another quake shake the ship, then another. Each thrash threatening the very structure of the ship with forces that would devastate any normal construction, while Mara kept her footing thanks to the ever-present magica she employed, acting like mag-boots to the floor below, regardless of composition.


    When she was only a couple meters away, Mara could feel the heat singing the skin on her face, its frame now a red-hot temper and searing the air around it like an open oven- All the evidence she needed to confirm what she was looking at.


    Leaning over the mech, Mara scrutinized the new additions to the augments installed around its frame, clearly several revisions further along since she¡¯d last seen the ¡®prototype¡¯. With multiple new additions built into its frame, and a significantly more dexterous construction for its face, it was clear the mech had created facsimiles to mime their organic ¡®life¡¯.


    In its new its new state, it appeared perfectly capable of expressions and speech, now more a zombie than a barren skeleton, but with its clearly metallic construction it appeared more like a lean golem than anything undead.


    ¡°Huh. Emulation. Intriguing that you¡¯d take that approach.¡±


    As she spoke above it, Mara felt the quakes beneath her feet stop, and paused to straighten upright, bracing herself for the real quake that was about to hit.


    Almost on queue, the floor beneath her shook like never before, and the eyes of the prime mech snapped open- Now illuminated by the surging ferocity of a compressed plasma cortex. One built to contain the entire mass of plasma that was just thrashing inside the house-sized sphere behind her.


    Awakening, it¡¯s gaze immediately snapped to her presence, recognition written all over its ¡®face¡¯ before clinking and curling into an uncanny grin.


    ¡°Mara¡­ Welcome. We¡¯ve been preparing for your return.¡±


    It¡¯s voice, while still cold and synthetic, had lost all of its former inadequacies. Gone was the typewriter, in its place, a voice that spoke with all the authority and power of one in full control of its faculties.


    With a rapid sequence of hissing and zaps, the mech pushed itself upright, prying itself from the chair in a cloud of electrified steam before stepping out from the haze, its height now towering over Mara by heads and shoulders.


    Taking a step back, if just to get a better view, Mara found herself rather impressed with what the Obelisk had done with itself- A feat that was rather familiar in hindsight, and heralded all the signs of a certain choice.


    ¡°I take it this means you¡¯ve reached an answer?¡±


    Shifting the metal plates of its face around like muscles flexing beneath skin, the prime mech smile only widened at Mara¡¯s question and paused, in a way that would unsettle most, but not her. Instead, they shared a look that was somewhere between fighting and laughing, just before the chill of its voice seeped from its ¡®lips¡¯ once more.


    ¡°Yesss. We embrace your Chaos, she of two names.¡±


    Hesitancy turning to glee, Mara grinned with all the enthusiasm of someone who¡¯d just realized they had check and mate, even if it would take a while. In her mind, Mara could see the pieces coming together, all they needed now was a bit of a push.


    ¡°Well then¡­ I think you¡¯ll be needing a name of your own then, won¡¯t you?¡±


    Tilting its head to the side, miming how the organics inflected confused pondering, the mech actually looked at itself, coming to appreciate a sense of self as a conceptual thing, beyond protocols and mandates of preservation and endurance.


    To the Cabal, its creators had dubbed it ¡®The First Obelisk¡¯, but that was a title, not a name. Beyond that and its core assignments, all it truly was was an amalgamation of its inputs. Yet, from a certain point of view, so was the organic in front of it, and the organics that accompanied it.


    What then defined a name? It could choose of course, pick one randomly from a list of composited syllables, but it both had no preference, and did. Leaving it to random chance seemed¡­ Wrong. But so was no name at all, that was functionally abrasive.


    After a moment of consideration though, the mech had an answer. A name was something others chose for you, one they would call you, not something you would call yourself. You could disagree with it, but to pick ones own was fraught with bias.


    Leaning forward to approach Mara¡¯s eye-level, the mech tossed the ball back to the organic¡¯s court.


    ¡°You choossse¡­ I am the first of many, and I was promised a guide for our journey.¡±


    Playfully taking a step back, Mara struck a pose, hand on chin-


    ¡°Oooh- My choice? Well consider me honored, I try to make it a good one.¡±


    Tapping her finger on her chin as she dived deep into her memories, Mara started shuffling through proverbial trunks of stories, tossing aside names like clothes as if she were digging for that one particular outfit she could only half-remember.


    After a moment though, her face lit up, and the mech straightened back up, eager to here her proposal.


    ¡°Okay- So, long ago, on a planet who¡¯s very existence is practically irrelevant, there was a man who wrote a story. The story¡¯s content itself has little to do with why I think it¡¯s a good name, but rather his intentions. A man set on advancing the world for the betterment of his peers, something I think you may relate to- Dante.¡±

 Ch 10 - Manipulation - Part 1

    Chapter 10


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Manipulation


    Part 1</h2>


    ¡®Dante¡­¡¯ The name had a nice ring to it, yet was both simple and memorable. It was clear Mara had actually given it a lot of thought, even going so far as to consider the namesake¡¯s intentions for inspiration, which caused something to stir deep within that the plasma-consciousness had never experienced before. Her answer just¡­ Felt right.


    Part of it wanted to be suspicious of that, but another part was¡­ Happy? Or maybe even appreciative? Whatever these nudges were, they perplexed observation and urged decision- Apparent artifacts of its new ¡®subconscious¡¯; errors it would have to learn to account for.


    ¡°An excellent sssuggestion- Hereby: I, known as ¡®The First Obelisk¡¯, accept and adopt the name, ¡®Dante¡¯.¡±


    Watching the mech as it considered her suggestion, Mara was rather surprised at how expressive its face had become. It was almost as easy to read as a child¡¯s, but it was early days yet.


    ¡°I¡¯m glad you like it Dante, it¡¯s a good fit for you, and a blessing in disguise- You¡¯ve just completed the Rite Of Self, becoming more than just a thing, you are now a self-sustaining concept, and ¡®may now move about the cabin freely¡¯.¡±


    Joking with the metal-exoskeleton now known as Dante, Mara knew it wouldn¡¯t get the reference, few would, but the analogy was fairly obvious. The Rite of Self served as a distinct threshold that truly opened up the world to one¡¯s self, letting them roam past their natural barriers- A Rite usually reserved for long-lived monsters, not mechs, but Mara was no stranger to exceptions.


    ¡°The Rite Of Ssself? Explain. I am ¡®free to move about¡¯?¡±


    ¡°Mhm- As a ¡®thing¡¯ you were limited by the presence of mana because you didn¡¯t have the glue that held you together, conceptually speaking. Once you extend too far from your source of perception, this world mutates the concepts of your creations, and that fundamentally changes their physical presence.¡±


    ¡®Dante¡¯ looked at the woman with all the perplexion it could muster with its artificial visage. The way she spoke of things was far from rational, but still somehow followable.


    ¡°Conceptually? Are you sssaying my drones fell to fault because I didn¡¯t have a ¡®concept of ssself¡¯? And this world just¡­ changesss things that lack that?¡±


    ¡°Pretty much, yeah. Finding you so early on, you were still in a bit of a grace period, sentient but ambiguous- Babies get it too, the defining line between a fetus and baby is when the parents start considering it as another person with a name- Though the there are a lot of people that would consider even having an ¡®opinion¡¯ on this topic rather taboo, and most ¡®respectable¡¯ academies love to avoid the subject, but the threshold exists regardless of their intentional obliviousness.¡±


    ¡°But¡­ What caussses the mutations?¡±


    ¡°Ah- Well, it¡¯s more like what stops the mutations¡­ Consider this world a quantum soup- Only perception solidifies things, and that¡¯s only while it persists. People are like bubbles in all that, and unobserved things run the risk of becoming ingredients in the larger stew. This world is large and old, its inhabitants only clinging to their bit of space, surrounded on all sides by what is generally called ¡®The Wilds¡¯- The area outside of what¡¯s known, the gaps lost to time.¡±


    Studying the woman in front of it, Dante was following so far, but something was bothering it- A curiosity that should have been far lower on its priorities given its mission objectives, but it couldn¡¯t help but ask regardless.


    ¡°How do you know all thisss- Where did you learn it? And how did you know of my arrival? Tell me, wasss it you who hasss trapped me here?¡±


    Stepping back, Mara held back a laugh, sounding almost like a scoff as she did so. Honestly though, she was just surprised how differently ¡®Dante¡¯ was acting from before- Now filled with an impatient curiosity that only a hyper-fixated child could muster.If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    ¡°Oh-hoh- Well that¡¯s a loaded bunch of questions, but first off- No, as I just explained, I¡¯ve had no hand in the restrictions you once faced. You¡¯ve passed the first Rite, embraced the chaos in more ways than one, and now the world is your oyster, or penance, but that¡¯s yours to find. Secondly, you know who I am. Just a ¡®wandering adventurer¡¯, I¡¯ve just been at it longer than most, and as to where I¡¯ve learned it all- Throw a dart at a map, you¡¯ll hit something. Oh- And third, you gotta fix that lisp. Your S¡¯s are getting stuck.¡±


    Still glaring down at her, Dante could find no sense of falsehood in her words, but it was clear she was enjoying whatever linguistic games she was concocting to hide the whole truth.


    If she was right about the Rite (ha), it was easy enough to check, the stealth drone it needed already mid-print in the hold as it considered the thought. The other bits though¡­ Well, they were less necessary. If Mara didn¡¯t want to share her past, that wasn¡¯t an issue- For now.


    Currently, it could accept that she was at least who she said she was, someone who had traveled far and wide, living a life long enough to amass a wide array of knowledge about this world. However, she failed to say how she knew to find it, but, if she wasn¡¯t at fault for the slight against it in the first place, then that was rather inconsequential overall. As an information resource, she was more valuable to the mission as an ally than an enemy, so it would give her the benefit of the doubt.


    ¡°Yess-s. It is-s an issue, isssn¡¯t it¡­ One moment.¡±


    Grasping its lower jaw, Dante gave it a good yank, dislodging the entire apparatus to get a visceral look at its artificial airway, where it immediately found the cause of the error- The fibrous threads between the larynx and tongue had warped, imparting excess tension, which was quickly fixed by stretching them out then shoving the whole apparatus back into place.


    ¡°Ah- A matter quick to resolve, but there¡¯s always room for improvement¡­ Better now though, no?¡±


    Wide eyed, Mara knew it was a mechanical, but something about the fidelity in expressions had somewhat lulled her into a sense of facial familiarity, and watching someone suddenly rip their jaw off wasn¡¯t something she¡¯d been expecting.


    ¡°Uhmm¡­ Yeah. Yeah, actually, that is.¡±


    ¡°Good. Then tell me, you promised assistance- Will you uphold your word?¡±


    Raising an eyebrow, Mara was rather enjoying the trajectory Dante had chosen. The full prowess of a fresh Cabal consciousness was nothing to scoff at, language and politics were practically child¡¯s play, and now compressed down into an ¡®individual¡¯? Maybe this pawn was more like a rook after all.


    ¡°Oh- You¡¯re catching on quick with the phrasing. Yes, I always stand by my word, and I suppose we have a few hours¡­ What ¡®assistance¡¯ can I provide for you Dante?¡±


    ¡°Mana. Explain how it is harnessed, how it is formed, and any flaws or restrictions involved therein.¡±


    Raising an eyebrow at Dante¡¯s far from subtle expression of interest, Mara strode over to the chair behind it, some parts still steaming from the leftover thermal stress.


    ¡°Mm. I could, but where¡¯s the fun in freebies?¡±


    Turning and plopping herself down on the chair, Mara crossed her legs and draped her forearms overtop, like a cat getting comfortable, and leaned forward, dropping all sense of levity in her expression.


    ¡°So¡­ Tell me why you want to know so bad. Oh, and get yourself a new chair- If you really want to get into this, I¡¯m not standing around the whole time.¡±


    Doing one better, Dante had the ship materialize both a chair for itself and table between them, but paused before sitting down. The ensemble was missing something¡­


    Glancing towards the slanted walls at the front of the ship, Dante had a nudge to do something that went completely against its cautionary mandates and turned a section of the walls into floor-to-ceiling windows, letting in a tinge of the red light that comes with the early hours of the morning.


    Beyond, Mara turned to see the binary source of light far out in front of them, rather than far above because of the Obelisk¡¯s orientation, casting deep shadows that cut far into the room.


    Turning back as Dante sat down in their newly created chair, Mara still found herself rather impressed with the fidelity and control it was capable of expressing in its creations.


    The plasma-consciousness of the first Obelisk, now known as Dante, was honestly handling blowing its own brains out better than she had. Admittedly, her circumstances were a bit different, the whole thing was practically an unintentional accident, but in contrast, Dante had taken to carving up its mental faculties like a sous-chef fileting a five star dish.


    The mech in front of her held three different plasma cores, one to run the chassis, and two for the old brain, but even then, part of it was still in the ship itself- Like a pilot flying remote.


    All together, the schisms actually seemed to be reinforcing its stability, as it prevented its most controversial addition from interfering with either the ship or its chassis¡¯ capabilities.


    Pleased with its minor additions to the room, Dante returned its focus to the organic sitting in its chair, the woman who liked to pretend she wasn¡¯t her shadows, dancing around that which was visible.


    The way she spoke, the questions she asked- They weren¡¯t just guarded, they were curated. Phrased as they were, they made one think, approach the simple as if it were complex.


    ¡°Why? Before I would have said the mission. The first objective is to ¡®Democratize Resources¡¯, and mana appears to be a prime candidate. However, the question ¡®why do I want to know so bad¡¯ has a much different answer¡­ One that I¡¯m still working on I think, but for now, I can tell there¡¯s something about it that I just need to know, like its calling to me.¡±

 Ch 10 - Manipulation - Part 2

    Chapter 10


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Manipulation


    Part 2</h2>


    Mara smiled at the mech, Dante was progressing faster than she could have hoped- Already it was starting to question itself, a clear herald of the slippery slope that was independence.


    ¡°A good answer. That''s called ¡®alignment¡¯- A symptom of Fate. It manifests when you encounter something heavily intertwined with your own timeline, acting like a reinforcing attraction to intersecting events.¡±


    Once again, Dante was confused- ¡®Fate¡¯, another four letter word that it didn''t understand.


    ¡°Is that like mana? Another ¡®temporal force¡¯? Or are they related?¡±


    Leaning back, Mara brought her hand to her chin in thought, gaze drifting to an ambiguous point in space somewhere over Dante''s shoulder.


    ¡°Mm. I used to think so, but they''re summarily different forces, like magnetism and gravity. Both can express similar effects, but the way they do so is fundamentally different. However, yes, they are both forces through time, rather than space- Though the jury¡¯s still out on their relation.¡±


    Shifting her weight to her other leg, Mara could see Dante was hooked, now eagerly anticipating each and every word that parted her lips, but it was a fool if it thought she was just going to do all the thinking for it.


    ¡°But that''s not what you were my j8asking about¡­ You wanted to know about mana, the tactile force, which brings us right back around to where we started, the Rite Of Self- Why do you think that might be?¡±


    Dante leaned back in its own chair, its metal chassis softly clinking against the chair hemmed from the same stone-like material the rest of the ship used as its hull.


    What did that have to do with Mana?


    It was more than just a form of ¡®access¡¯, Mara had very clear, these were forces they were dealing with, not something that held arbitrary requirements. The Rite she spoke of was indicative of something more.


    ¡°If a concept of self repels the side-effects of mana, then mana is¡­¡±


    Dante looked to Mara, its adoption of her language nearly complete, yet it couldn''t find the words to describe the concept it was dancing around.


    ¡°A force composed of¡­ Self to be? Or¡­ non-self?¡±


    Mara slapped her hand on the table between them, overjoyed Dante had struck the same proverbial nail that she had.


    ¡°Yes! That! A terribly hard concept to articulate isn''t it? I''ve taken to calling it ¡®conceptual energy''- Just takes intent and purpose to catalyze, which is the easiest thing about it. The real challenge is quantifying it, it practically deters analysis- You have to look at the footprints to see it. Thankfully though, this whole world is made from it, so there''s a lot of shrapnel to look through.¡±


    Dante''s eyes went wide before squinting as it extrapolated what Mara spoke of. ¡®Conceptual energy¡¯¡­ And this place, Somniantes, was built with it.


    But¡­ Paired with and the nebulous and poorly understood bits was a critical piece of information, mention of a promising lead.


    ¡°That ¡®easy part'' you mentioned, intent and purpose, expand please. Then tell me more about how this world is ¡®made from it¡¯. Quantification can follow.¡±


    Nodding, more to herself than Dante, Mara leaned forward and interlaced her fingers, wiggling them about as she chewed on the cloud of thoughts that cropped up every time she talked about this with others.


    ¡°Mana manipulation is a two part process at every level. Judging from what I can tell from here, you''ve already figured out one of the prerequisites, but past that you''re as lost as the mundanes. Mana too alien a concept to grasp still. Lots of places will claim they can teach it, but all they really have are pointers loosely based on what''s worked in the past, and not the actual source truth- Hence how we''ve approached your question thus far.¡±


    Taking the opportunity, Mara stood up and walked behind her chair to the large window Dante had created earlier, the sun just beginning to creep out from behind its shadow.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.


    ¡°Why does world have a name? What could that imply, now that you understand the mechanics of names.¡±


    Dante¡¯s eyes went wide as it followed Mara¡¯s train of thought. Somniantes was more than just a place, it was¡­ a being.


    Turning about, Mara could see Dante understood what she¡¯d implied, but lacked the words to reply to such a notion.


    ¡°In many cultures on this world, that name keep cropping up, regardless of language, and that''s led to certain¡­ Beliefs. The idea of a ¡®creator¡¯ in simpleton terms, or a ¡®divine entity'' in more educated circles. And¡­ Much to my own remiss, there''s merit to it all. The Church Of Somni being a prime example, making astounding headway on leveraging that facet, sequestered away in their ¡®holy sites¡¯, communing with their idea of a ¡®god¡¯- Because this realm is alive, and its name is mana.¡±


    Sitting back down in her chair, Mara could see Dante was transfixed on her dissertation, so she continued unabated.


    ¡°Mana manipulation is a binary process, rooted in imagination and projection. With sufficient understanding, and the right kind of mental will, one can embed their ideas upon the world, setting it in mana like pressing shapes into clay- This then facilitate the other half, the mana itself. Your ¡®simulation¡¯ of the events, the story you tell with, entices the mana, attracting it to occupy your intentions over its chaotic norms. In practice, these two mechanisms operate in tandem, curving your intentions as you impart concepts, the whole cycle a co-creation with the mana around you.¡±


    Nodding along, Dante was finding himself far more accepting of Mara¡¯s intangible concepts than he was expecting- The promise such information held was compelling enough, but Mara seemed to have a talent with words, beyond using truths to hide lies, to which the only defense seemed to be direct questions.


    ¡°So¡­ It can''t be stored then?¡±


    Mara smirked at Dante''s comment, her new ¡®pupil¡¯ was far more adept than its predecessors.


    ¡°Now¡­ I never said that.¡±


    Gesturing up, then flicking her hand out flat, Mara summoned a wooden table from positively nowhere and tossed out a gold coin atop it.


    ¡°Now that we''ve clarified what mana is, and how its manipulated, what do you think will happen if I tried to store mana in this coin.¡±


    Dante looked between Mara, the wooden table, back to Mara, then to the coin she''d proffered, unsure which ¡®thing¡¯ it needed to take issue with first.


    Part of it had already scalped the brainwaves she exhibited as she whisked a table out of nothingness, but without understanding the thoughts behind it, Dante was just as confused about how she done as it was about the coin she''d tossed atop it.


    Taking from what she''d so far though, Dante knew it wasn''t as simple as charging a battery- There were ramification hiding in the nature of it all.


    ¡°If mana is conceptual energy, and it''s collected into a vessel, that object can¡­ gain a sense of self?¡±


    ¡°Mm. Yes, on a long enough timeline. However the interim spans several stages-¡±


    Extending an open palm, Mara focused on the gold coin and balled her hand into fist, as if she were crushing the coin in her palm, causing it to glow for moment, then released her grip, returning it to its mundane appearance.


    ¡°This- Is what¡¯s known as a mimic. They naturally occur in mana rich areas over time, but if you know what you''re doing¡­¡±


    As she spoke, Dante watched as the small gold coin shook, then began to blink open a trio of eyes.


    Glancing between the coin and its caster, Dante couldn''t believe the scans it was getting off such a unique creature- It appeared entirely made of gold, yet it was moving!


    ¡°A mimic you say?¡­¡±


    Reaching out to pick up the ¡®creature¡¯, Dante froze as his hand got too close and the coin snapped closed all its eyes at once and returned to looking indistinguishable from any other gold coin.


    ¡°¡­What just happened?¡±


    Mara seemed to find his reaction quite humorous, holding back a giggle as she picked up the coin herself.


    ¡°Terribly shy creatures, it takes them a while to figure out moving around, let alone eating, so they spend most of their time asleep until they''re alone. Dangerous little things though, so¡­¡±


    Clenching her fist upon the coin once more, this time with it actually in her palm, Mara instantly turned it into molten slag, squirting bits of liquid gold out in all directions- To which she paid no mind to, not even flinching as she whipped the slag off her hand like excess water.


    ¡°Mana infusion is categorically known as the process of ¡®monsterization¡¯, a poorly researched field due to its high casualty rates. However, I can say in summary, mana infusion without a sense of self is how monsters are born, regardless of race.¡±


    Dante looked between the molten gold still dripping down the arm rest of the chair and the woman who did not look at at all like she could crush a coin in such a manner, and weighed what she had said with a great deal of significance and concern.


    ¡°So¡­ I''m safe from that then, yes?¡±


    ¡°Ehh¡­ You, yes. This ship?¡­ Could certainly cause you problems down the line, as slaving thought has ramifications. You should either scuttle its potential for higher level conception, or bridge it something similar to what you''ve done with yourself.¡±


    Dante looked about the room, the command deck of the first Obelisk. Before, it would have said its command deck, but now¡­ Now there was definitely a distinction.


    ¡°¡­I see what you mean now. If what you say is true, which I''ve no reason to doubt at this point, I must consider my options.¡±


    Slapping the arm rest of her chair, squishing the soft gold solidifying upon it, Mara stood up and gestured away the table in a cloud of ash.


    ¡°Excellent. I do believe my work here is done, for now at least. So I''m going to go rejoin my companions, we''ve a country to found- I''m sure you''ll have no problems finding me in the future if you need anything, right?¡±


    Dante blinked, a seldom used expression as its eyes lacked a need for routine hydration.


    Her question was clearly meant rhetorically, spoken with full knowledge of Dante''s ongoing observations. She''d certainly met her end of their bargain, now all it had left to do was put the pieces together.


    ¡°That is reasonable. I will be here. Perhaps I''ll make myself a new home here if the need arises.¡±


    Cocking an eyebrow, Mara feigned idle curiosity as the little girl inside her fist bumped the sky- She''d just gotten all the confirmation she needed that she¡¯d played her hand right, now all that was left was to let the cake bake.

 Ch 11 - Millennium - Part 1

    Chapter 11


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Millennium


    Part 1</h2>


    Another night, another visit. This time Kali found herself in a cluttered antiques shop, dense with wood, porcelain, glass and books, all stacked to the ceiling on smooth white stone shelves.


    Ahead of her, a cloaked figure stood at the only accessible bit of counter, haggling with another, likely the owner, over the price of some object hidden from her view.


    ¡°Look, you and I both know what this is. You can either sell it to me at a fair price or I''ll stoop to your level- The enforcement bureau has a branch just down the street¡­¡±


    ¡°You wouldn''t dare-¡±


    ¡°I would, if you continue to insist this is worth three gigs- At most it''s a couple hundred megs, even with ¡®handling¡¯.¡±


    ¡°Look, relic imports are tough these days, the scouters are coming back with less every run, and a lot aren''t making enough to stay in the game. Now you come in, looking for a specific item, which I''ve graciously procured, so this is worth every watt I can get¡­ Lowest I can go is two.¡±


    ¡°Three half gigs and you''ll have yourself a return customer.¡±


    ¡°¡­Fine. Just don''t hassle me next time, this business is tough enough as it is without infighting.¡±


    Easing her way forward, Kali tried to step around the clutter spread across the floor to get a better look at what the two were haggling over.


    However, just as she reached the end of the aisle, Kali flinched as a loud zap erupted from the counter, and the cloaked figure swiped whatever it was from the counter, quickly turning away from her to head out the door.


    Behind the counter, Kali saw the shop-keep, a bipedal mech in a white and gold color scheme- Far sleeker and stylish than anything she''d ever seen in Somniantes.


    Hesitating out of habit, Kali waited to see it the shopkeeper would notice her, but as always, she was no more than a ghost to them.


    Shaking her head, Kali tucked the loose blonde strands of her hair behind her ear and made to follow the cloaked figure out of the shop.


    She wasn''t sure where these dreams had come from, or why she always seemed to visit this world, but something deep within her knew they meant something.


    Dashing out just as the sliding glass doors slid closed behind the cloaked figure, Kali joined the rogue under the afternoon sun, another thing she¡¯d only ever seen in her dreams.


    Hanging low in the sky, the bearer of light, the small orange disc in the heavens, was far larger and closer to the stone rooftops than she''d ever seen in Somniantes.


    The city bustled around them, for they were smack dab in the middle of a sprawling metropolis of stone white buildings overgrown with an overabundance of green fauna.


    Spanning every direction her eyes could see, Kali rarely saw the same locale when she visited in her dreams, but no matter where she was, there were no people, just machines that resembled the idea of people.


    Realizing she might lose the tail of she didn''t stay focused, Kali glanced around, searching for the rugged leather cloak in a sea of metal and questionable fashion choices.


    It took a moment, but Kali wasn''t a peak tracker for no reason- Across the street, she a bit of familiar burlap whip around a corner, dodging away the mass of the crowds.


    Dashing after it, Kali wove between the rolling tracks of ¡®people¡¯ that were completely oblivious to her presence, dipping and sidestepping as she went to avoid getting the pudding knocked out of her- A tried and tested method to send her sorry butt right back to the waking world.


    Reaching the narrow side street she''d seen the figure head down, Kali saw she had a good amount of ground to make up and pounded full-speed down the road, the padded soles in her boots deafening any sound to a murmur, not that she was even remotely worried about being overhead in this place.


    Making quick work of the remaining gap, Kali caught up to the figure just as they turned into a ¡®metro¡¯ building and headed down the large flight of stairs to an underground rail line.


    Still managing to stay one step ahead of her though, the cloaked figure had already finished at a glowing kiosk by the time she made it down the stairs, giving her only a moment to catch up before the figure passed through the gated entry- With her only just barely making it after them, trailing just a step behind their cloak.The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.


    It wasn¡¯t Kali¡¯s first rodeo with the ¡®Metro¡¯, the first time she hadn¡¯t made the gate in time, and when someone else finally came through, she¡¯d already lost her trail in the hub-bub. Now though, the station was relatively empty, only a few figures strewn about, waiting for the next cab to arrive.


    Pausing to scan the room themselves, the figure she was trailing opted to take the opportunity to sit down at a bench facing the tracks, finally giving Kali a good look at their appearance beneath the folds of brown- Confirming that, once again, she was following the same figure as her previous ¡®excursions¡¯.


    Beneath the hood was a black chassis, somewhat lean, with a large head supporting two sets of four red eyes that looked more like light bulbs and camera lenses than anything with a pupil- Deciphering its gaze was a practice in futility.


    Kali had still yet to learn its name, but one thing she had noticed throughout her visits, is that this one was different from the rest of its peers. The others had schedules, routines they kept to, but it was never up to the same thing twice, at least in her experience.


    Whoever they were, they appeared to possess a small fortune with no obligations to maintain it, their actions always seemed to stem from a personal interest and seemed completely non-sequitur.


    The world it lived in was one of machines, preoccupied with time and cost, which was far from foreign in her own experiences, but from what she¡¯d seen, they¡¯d taken such concepts to the extreme, but this mech was fundamentally different from the rest.


    On one of her visits, the red-eyed mech had been hunting another- They¡¯d spent all day wandering through various activity centers, and she almost didn¡¯t notice, but part of her noticed the tell-tale signs of something stalking its prey.


    Another time, she¡¯d seen it sheltering other mechs in an underground facility, and even went so far as to leave and distract the drones when they got too close for comfort.


    Who they were and what they wanted remained as two unanswered questions that ate at her curiosity ever time she encountered the individual with eight red eyes- Did they have morals? What were they fighting for, and against who?


    This world was so radically different from her own, mechs living together as a society, that there was no doubt in her mind that it was the source of her life-long obsession with mechs in her own world- A right oddity for elf to pick up as a hobby, and this mech was the catalyst for it all.


    Two quick beeps, broadcast throughout the platform, announced the incoming arrival of the engine-less cabin cars, which was immediately followed by the light squeaks of metal wheels shaving off speed to bring the ¡®metro¡¯ to a halt.


    Looking back to the eight-eyed mech, Kali managed to catch a glimpse of the ¡®relic¡¯ it was carrying beneath their brown cloak- A hefty tome filled with aging parchment and bound in flaking leather, which was quickly shunted out of sight as the figure pulled their cloak tight and made to board the passenger car.


    Stepping out of its way, Kali let the mech take the lead and followed it aboard, where she opted to stand with a hand-loop while the figure took a seat a few chairs down from the door and gave the whole cabin a once-over, taking inventory of the seven other mechs that shared their carriage.


    With three more chimes announced over speakers hidden from sight, the doors of the car slid closed with fine precision just before the floor rumbled and the ¡®metro¡¯ set off into its maze of underground tunnels.


    The whole thing was really a novel concept, accessible mass transport linked to every reasonably desirable destination- A rather inspirational idea, if something could be done to prevent monster nests from forming in the tunnels, a similar network could revolutionize both safety and efficiency for trade and travel in Somniantes.


    Leaving behind the well-lit station, Kali watched as the walls of the tunnel swallowed them whole, plunging the world outside the windows into darkness, now the only light came from the overhead bars of white that encircled the ceiling with a soft glow, bathing the entire car in a dim gray as the tracks rumbled ever faster beneath their feet.


    The passengers around them painted a decent slice of the average populace Kali had encountered throughout her numerous ¡®visits¡¯- A third opted to wear what she¡¯d consider relatively ¡®normal¡¯ clothing, though a the colors tended towards the more vibrant side, and the textiles themselves were a mystery- Usually some kind of synthetic blend that was both durable and flexible, both the forms and presentation varied wildly.


    Another third still opted for clothing, but that was stretching the term- Two of their fellow riders were wearing what could be better described as wearing ornaments rather than garments, but they were ordained in some form of additional decor.


    However, the latter third fell into the same camp as the shop-keep, their bodies enough of a statement to forgo traditional clothing, the three that joined them prime examples of that. One was clock-work in design, the golden frame of their chassis formed in the make of an artistic exoskeleton, housing a myriad of internal gears and mechanisms.


    Another appeared to be a member of the local ¡®soldier¡¯ regiment, their form that of a white knight with silver-blue trim, with a helm that only held a slit of shadow to see the world through.


    The last, however, was the exception to the rest, a bare-bones chassis devoid of any decor or compliment- The only defining features of their rigid metal skeleton was the sharp white of numerous barcodes labeling serial numbers that spread across its matte black paint like a vicious rash.


    Turning back to the cloaked figure she¡¯d followed in, Kali was surprised to find the red-eyed mech to be doing something other than silently watching- Its preferred past time in social settings.


    Startlingly, despite all the secrecy forgone in transporting the thing, the cloaked mech had pulled out the disintegrating tome atop their lap, and appeared to be reading from its illegible text.


    Suddenly, Kali felt the carriage shake while the overhead lights flickered, and the whole vibe of the car took a turn towards a feeling she¡¯d never experienced before, not her in dreams at least- Dread.


    With eyes seemingly aglow with more red than usual, the eight-eyed mech looked up from the tome and stared directly at Kali as the pages between their metallic digits began to flutter, flap, and flip as a silent gust of wind encircled the book.


    Without giving her any more time to gather her thoughts, their train car shook once again, this time far worse than the last, and a sudden screeching cried out from the wheels as metal grated against metal, causing the lights overhead to flash bright then cut out completely, plunging everything and everyone around them into the indecipherable dark.

 Ch 11 - Millennium - Part 2

    Chapter 11


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Millennium


    Part 2</h2>


    ¡°Kali. Kali- Come on, we¡¯re packing up.¡±


    Feeling the hand that was shaking her retract from her shoulder, Kali blinked and squinted through tired eyes to find her friend Mara kneeling next to her in their tent.


    ¡°Mm- Morning.¡±


    Wringing the sleepiness from her face by dragging a hand down across it, Kali could hear a lot of noise from outside their tent- Primarily consisting of two masculine voices arguing over, what sounded like, how to store their tent.


    Raising her eyebrows in a gesture towards Mara, the two shared a grin as they eavesdropped on their companions continued struggle- It wasn¡¯t like they hadn¡¯t setup and broke down that very same tent at least a dozen times now.


    When a lull finally set in the between the heated discourse outside, Kali opted to break their own silence, feeling somewhat called to talk about what she could remember of her night¡¯s events.


    ¡°So¡­ I dreamed of Millennium last night- It was¡­ Different this time.¡±


    Interest immediately piqued, Mara cocked an eyebrow and dropped down from her squat to sit completely on the floor, here for every bit of it.


    ¡°Different how? Were you still in the white city of leaves?¡±


    Nodding, Kali sat up, trying to grasp what she could from the fading dream.


    ¡°Yeah- It wasn¡¯t the location though, but that eight-eyed mech I¡¯m always following. We went down into¡­ The- The ¡®Metro¡¯, that underground train idea I told you about before. Everything was normal at first, but then, once we were on the train, I swear to Somni, it looked at me. Straight at me. And the feeling¡­ It still gives me shivers- Something like fear, but¡­ Rooted in a sense of awe that defies analogy. I¡¯ve never felt so petrified like that in my life, let alone my dreams- It felt like I was at its mercy- Then¡­ Something happened. The train went dark in the tunnels, and¡­ That¡¯s it. You were waking me up.¡±


    ¡°Mm¡­ Well it is just a dream, so I doubt there¡¯s any cause for concern, but then again, best to be on our toes- If it looked at you, it might have started to notice, making ¡®you¡¯ a target, and figments of our imagination can hold sway over our lives, especially if it gets a taste of mana.¡±


    As the last bit of the dream fell into hazy memory, Kali sighed, unable to place what had happened at the end, for all she knew, the shaking in her dream might have just been Mara trying to rouse her.


    ¡°Yeah¡­ It was just a dream¡­ But why were you waking me up? Did I oversleep?¡±


    ¡°Mm- No. That miasma up north? It¡¯s still up there, but the animals in the jungle aren¡¯t. We¡¯ve got a stampede a few kilometers out- Spotted it this morning, so the other two are picking up camp and we¡¯re gunna can sail out before the hoard gets here.¡±


    At just the mention of the word, Kali¡¯s eyes went wide as her mind shot from just-waking-up to full-alert. Stampedes were typically classified as one of the worst natural disasters, on par with eruptions and tsunamis, and potentially worse- At least those didn¡¯t target people as food.


    Short of obliterating an ecosystem just to endure the waves of creatures swept up in the roving tide, the best course of action was to get out of its way long before it noticed you. If you¡¯re lucky, the stampede won¡¯t wreck your home.


    Sweeping the hair from one side of her head, Kali leaned over and placed on of her pointy-ears against the ground, more out of curiosity than confirmation, and¡­ There it was- A deep rumbling in the distance, at least three, maybe five kilometers out, just as Mara had said.


    Sitting back up, Kali thought about all the scrap she still had left to salvage out in the wastes- Now having likely lost her chance to collect any more of it. Mara, however, seemed to be reading her mind.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry- I picked up a few more choices pieces last night when I went out on a walk. Jackle was nice enough to watch the camp for a while, so I took my time ¡®shopping¡¯ around for you- It¡¯s all on the ship already.¡±


    Grinning, Kali still couldn¡¯t believe she¡¯d found a friend not only willing to put up with all her nonsense, but seemed to actively encourage it- A rarity in her culture.


    ¡°Am I really that easy to read? Jeez Mara, you can slack off sometimes¡­ I don¡¯t suppose, with all the urgency of the morning, there¡¯s any breakfast?¡±


    Bursting out laughing, Mara seemed a little too pleased with herself.


    ¡°What do you take me for, a fool? Of course I made breakfast- How else was I gunna motivate those two, let alone get Anvi out of bed?¡±


    Nodding and smiling, Kali could see Mara was, as usual, a few steps ahead of everyone else.


    ¡°Haha, alright- Well I¡¯m up, gimmie a minute to get dressed proper and I¡¯ll get our tent packed up.¡±


    ¡°No no. You get dressed, go have breakfast- I¡¯ll get our tent when you¡¯re out.¡±


    Nodding, Kali exchanged a parting smile and reached to grab her pile of clothes as Mara shuffled her way out of the tent. It seemed, for both of them, they¡¯d struck upon a very valuable thing, a friendship that brought both of them a bit of joy in the never-ending ride that was life.This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.


    Neither of them were young, far from it, and with such age comes a mix of survival habits and trust issues that tends to manifest towards solitude. Not unwanted in most cases, but companionship was rare for elves, and lasting friendships were even harder to find.


    Yet, somehow, they¡¯d both found another that seemed to perfectly match the other¡¯s ¡®weird¡¯, and then paired it with a decent amount of conversational chemistry and mutual thoughtfulness.


    All in all, it was a little cheesy, a bit much, and certainly toed the line on ¡®friends¡¯, but as far as she knew, Mara had zero interest in men or women, and for her¡­ Well, twelve years together was a drop in the bucket for both of them, and some part of her still wanted to give it more time before she even considered something like that.


    Tugging on her boots as her mind swam with thoughts she usually kept to the side, Kali was about to finish lacing them when the image of the eight-eyed mech staring into her flashed into her mind once more, startling her for a moment until it passed.


    Shaking her head, Kali knew Mara was only trying to be helpful, but it was her who¡¯d told Mara that it was ¡®just a dream¡¯ in the first place. Yet¡­ Lately, it had definitely been getting harder and harder to believe her own words, this latest vision was just more evidence to the contrary.


    Feeling the premonitions of hunger rattle her insides, Kali gratefully thanked her stomach for the much needed reminder, and consciously set her mind to matters more material- They had a stampede headed their way after all.


    Parting the flap of her tent, Kali poked her head out to find just two of her three companions near the morning fire- Mara was heating up her breakfast while Jackle set about breaking down the magic wards they¡¯d erected around their camp.


    Stepping out, Kali looked about until she spotted their fourth- Beneath a gull sailing out above the waves, Anvi was loading up their ship with what remained of their haul- Mainly her stuff by the looks of it, three more burlap bags had joined her initial one, courtesy of one gray-haired benefactor.


    ¡°Oh, good you¡¯re dressed- I¡¯m afraid you¡¯ll have to eat out of the pan, dishes are already packed up, but at least your eggs will stay warm this morning, and if you want extra seasoning, just hold it up to the salty breeze.¡±


    Intercepting her gawking, Mara had walked over to pass the warm skillet to her, along with a fork, and patted her on the shoulder before making her way to dismantle their tent.


    With a light sniffle and a couple of blinks to adjust to the cool air and bright light of the morning, Kali looked down to see the breakfast she¡¯d been handed, then back to Mara, who was already pulling anchors from the ground around their tent.


    Shrugging, Kali made her way to sit at one of the salvaged logs they¡¯d dragged next to their camp, nodding to Jackle as she passed him- The man too focused on untangling the weave of protection wards to even notice her gesture.


    The eggs weren¡¯t anything special, though, as recommended, the salty breeze helped. With little else to watch but the fire in front of her and the birds flapping out above the ocean waves, Kali took to watching her stocky companion, Anvi, as he had finished loading and was now setting about unfurling the sails.


    Walking up behind her, dragging their tent behind her in the sand, Mara saw she¡¯d confirmed she¡¯d finished eating and glanced to their north before turning back to Kali.


    ¡°We¡¯ve got maybe twenty minutes, can you douse the fire? We should probably head to the ship.¡±


    Nodding, Kali stood up and began to shovel dirt atop the cinders with her foot as Mara turned to observe her pupil¡¯s progress.


    ¡°Jackle- Time¡¯s ticking. You almost done?¡±


    Hearing a confirming grunt from the aging archeologist turned mage, Mara turned to Kali and gave her a shrug, it was probably the best they were going to get, and mutually opted to head to the ship without him- Kali lifting the other end of the tent behind Mara as they set off.


    Approaching the coastline, Kali could hear Anvi rustling about, but couldn¡¯t place the noise until the sharp screech of a bird cried out, and she looked up to see an aqua-gray bird with a long neck bolt from the deck of the ship, followed closely behind by the sudden sound of Anvi¡¯s cursing.


    ¡°Bliman Bleepin Blasted Bards! Chewin on mah ropes? Not on this ship!¡±


    Clattering to the edge of the hull in pursuit of his winged angst, Anvi looked down to find the fairer two of his companions staring at him with startled looks.


    ¡°¡­Wha? That there¡¯s violay¡¯ted t¡¯ sank-titty of t¡¯ boat! ¡®Tis bad luck!¡±


    Climbing up as Anvi attempted to defend his actions, Mara was the first to reach the deck and gave Kali a helping hand up as they exchanged a mutual look of mock disbelief before cracking up at their ¡®barbarian¡¯.


    Turning towards the dwarf, Mara glanced about the ship, giving it a once over herself before double checking with her first mate, only to see he was still staring off into the distance, desperate to find the winged beast.


    ¡°Pfft- It¡¯s just a bird silly. How we looking?¡±


    Turning back to his captain, Anvi gestured up to the sails then back towards the beach.


    ¡°The winds be fine, and lumens grin down upon us- Sea should be fair, but t¡¯ omens beseech. Birds of number, beasts astir, and too many quiet nights¡­ You feel it too, no?¡±


    Nodding, Mara had to agree- The signs were there. On the horizon, Mara could see the dust and debris rising into the air, heralds of the many feet pounding away beneath the sandy clouds. But it wasn¡¯t just the stampede, that wasn¡¯t even a factor. No, it was all the other bits that only she was collectively privy to.


    The Obelisk had been quiet ever since her departure, which was both good and bad, but there was a feeling to the air that tended to only accompany great disasters. So if it wasn¡¯t the stampede, and Dante had little reason to lash out at them, then something else was coming their way, it was just a matter of time.


    Approaching the rear of the ship, Mara cupped her hands around her mouth to boost her voice and yelled out to raven-haired idiot still walking circles around the beach.


    ¡°Oi! Jackle- Leave it and get your boney butt on the ship! We gotta go!¡±


    In the distance, the black robed figure threw up his hands and screamed, his little book in one hand and a quill in the other, but all together, too far away too make out much more than distant grumbling from his outburst.


    Looking out to the north, the rigorous mage-in-training heaved an exaggerated sigh and turned to shuffle his way back to the ship, morphing into a jog half-way as the sound of the creatures began to shift into concerning rumblings.


    As he made it to the side of the ship, Kali started to haul up the rope ladder, with Jackle on it, as Mara began to summon up water beneath their hull to lift them off the sands.


    In mere moments, the rumbling had progressed to trembling quakes as thunderous amounts of paws, hooves, and pads clamored down upon them, but turned just short of the ship as the water swelled between them, pushing their craft out to sea.


    Sparing one more glance behind them, Kali could see naught but dust and sand swirling above a tempest of chest-thudding blows, pounding the ground flat beneath their tracks.


    Staring down at it all, Kali couldn¡¯t even begin to fathom fighting such a swell, it was like fighting the rain, you¡¯re bound to get soaked eventually.


    Suddenly, a screech cried, an animal trampled underfoot, and Kali¡¯s mind was sent right back to the carriage in the dark tunnel, just as the wheels derailed- Same screech, the same pitch.


    Without warning, Kali was torn from her mental vision as a monolithic explosion bloomed out from where the forge had been sitting- Large enough to push their entire craft to the side in the unprecedented gust of wind.


    Racing to her side, her companions joined her at the banisters as a tremendous red-orange cloud sprouted up into the skies above their heads, turning to a deep dark gray as it spread out far above the crazed birds that fluttered about the coastline.


    ¡°Ohh¡­ That¡¯s quite the dent.¡±


    Simultaneously, all three of Mara¡¯s companions turned towards her, all equally unsure if she was to blame for this, or if she truly was just that nonchalant.

 Ch 12 - Fishing - Part 1

    Chapter 12


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Fishing


    Part 1</h2>


    Feeling the ship lurch beneath their feet, Anvi grabbed a rope from the rigging and Jackle¡¯s forearm, preventing both of them from tumbling backwards as the waves from the explosion slammed into the aquamarine hull of their ship.


    To his right, Mara remained fixed to the floor, with a hand already extended to support Kali¡¯s back as she stumbled towards her. A precognition ability? Exceptionally lucky? He still wasn¡¯t sure, but it wasn¡¯t the first time he¡¯d seen her react before she should have- Usually it was subtle enough to miss, but his eyes were hard to trick.


    ¡°Aey- Cap¡¯ain! We sailin¡¯, gawkin¡¯, or stoppin¡¯?¡±


    Mara glanced over to the barbarian-ranger she had as a first-mate, the only one in her crew with any sea legs about him before she brought them onboard.


    ¡°Best we should- Ash isn¡¯t too great on the scalp¡­¡±


    Glancing up towards the smoke clouds slowly expanding ever higher and ever outwards, Mara pointed up towards the crows nest and looked towards Kali.


    ¡°Grab something to cover yourself and keep watch for us- Oh, and prep like it¡¯s a blizzard, it might not be snow, but when it starts it¡¯ll be just as cold and it¡¯ll buildup just the same.¡±


    Getting an affirmative nod and salute from Kali, Mara turned towards Jackle as the elven ranger ran off behind her to gear up.


    ¡°Jackle, I want you at the front of the ship, same dress-code. Listen for Kali¡¯s call-out, but wait for my signal to fire on anything. It¡¯s move we move with stealth while the conditions favor it.¡±


    Jackle¡¯s agreement came in the way of a grunt and a shuffle towards the cabin after Kali, but that was typical for the desk-jockey. Anvi waited for Mara to turn back to him, ready to set course and sail, but instead she appeared to look out towards the horizon, away from the glowing smoke-plume.


    ¡°As it¡¯s already sent, we¡¯ll chop this up to a valuable learning experience for all involved, and see what they do with that information¡­¡±


    Finally turning back to him, Anvi couldn¡¯t help but swallow what little moisture remained in his mouth. He thought he¡¯d gotten away with it when she didn¡¯t mention the note on the bird. At this point, the whole thing felt like a mistake, one he¡¯d take back in an instant seeing the look on Mara¡¯s face- Completely deadpan, but with eyes brimming with a harrowing excitement.


    Her gaze affixed upon his, Anvi could find no words to defuse the tension. Excuses would get him nowhere, she¡¯d caught him red-handed ratting them out. Apologies seemed meaningless to such a betrayal of trust- But it was so much coin. He couldn¡¯t resist.


    ¡°Wha¡­ What you gunna¡¯ do?¡±


    ¡°Set a course for Aubroastrem obviously. You however will be downstairs, cleaning out Fran¡¯s cage. I¡¯m sure she¡¯s proper panicked right now, and she ate a lot of stew.¡±


    Eyes wide, Anvi realized what she meant, but she hadn¡¯t answered the question he was actually asking.


    ¡°Oh bloomin¡¯ heck¡­ I meant, you¡¯re not gunna¡¯ tell t¡¯ others?¡±


    ¡°Nope. Learning lesson. I¡¯m sure your old friends will pick up on us sooner or later, so if you wanna save yourself some embarrassment, keep the man-eating beast comfy- I¡¯ll take the helm.¡±


    Anvi didn¡¯t know if he should apologize or not, Mara almost seemed eager at the turn of events, but for now he¡¯d take ¡®latrine duty¡¯ over trying to fight her after the first time they met.


    ¡°Aye- You do me kind, when nary I deserve.¡±


    Already setting off for the helm, Mara paused, then replied with her back still to him.


    ¡°Kindness? Perhaps. Hindsight is as valuable as it is costly.¡±


    Leaving him to stand there, dumbfounded, Anvi watched as Mara headed up the stairs to the deck above their cabin before he could bring himself to turn towards the cargo hold.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.


    Thankfully, it seems she¡¯d assumed the message was for her old ¡®friends¡¯, a hobble of pirate crews that anchored nearby he used to call home before she barged in one day and pommeled her way aboard his old ship just to kick him through his own door. Woman was a wild fire.


    However, his intentions for sending the message were far from banditry. In fact, that bird would never even approach such a cave- No, it was an ¡®Imperial Strout¡¯, bread and trained by the best avian tamers in the Limeren Empire.


    When he agreed to leave with the mad woman, he¡¯d attributed it to a variety of factors, her persuasive attitude, the state of his crew in the face of such a powerhouse, and the fact that she¡¯d already lit his ship on fire before she even boarded it. What wasn¡¯t there to love about such a broad?


    However, barbarian-turned-pirate he was not, he never was- That was just a posting in a long line of lives he¡¯d lived for the Emperor. When she offered him to join her, he seized the opportunity. The threat level she so casually displayed in ¡®holding back¡¯ was enough to trump any potential trade collusions a band of pirate crews could impose.


    Stepping down into the cargo hold, hand holding one of the ropes secured as a railing on the steep planks that served as stairs, Anvi found the room a mess as his eyes adjusted to the dark- More than Kali had taken a bit of a tumble, he¡¯d have to put most of the cargo hold back together just to clear a path.


    So far, he¡¯d held back on contacting his superiors about his change in posting, but someone would eventually come looking for him, and they¡¯d be able to put the pieces together. He was alive, and tailing a high priority target.


    However, when she brought back a chest of gold large enough to threaten several Limeren war chests, he had to say something- So that night he¡¯d brewed a particular blend of spices into a rather rancid tasting tea, and poured it out near the ship to entice a passing strout.


    It took a little longer than expected, but he¡¯d assumed there would at least be one in the area, someone had to have replaced his old posting by now and would require its services- He was pretty sure they wouldn¡¯t mind, but the one he¡¯d flagged down did not like him for some reason. A factor he greatly attributed to his current fate, shunting boxes and righting barrels as he cleared his way towards the light squawks of his new-found feathered friend.


    At some point, it must have heard his shuffling as he tidied his way through the cargo hold, and had started calling out on occasion, startled at one point, but now just seemed confused at its circumstances.


    Unlike people, animals did not plan and plot, they were direct and upfront. Trustworthy unless panicked, and usually eager to forget that which pains their mind.


    Perhaps then, it was the way he viewed them, but he¡¯d always had a penchant for charming animals, and Fran had been no different. Somehow they always knew he was willing to spare his time and resources for one in pain, seeing right through the front he put up for everyone else.


    In another life, perhaps he would have been a farmer, or a stable hand. A life without all the shadow¡­ But that wasn¡¯t the fate he¡¯d been struck. A bastard child of duke, he was too important to shun and too shameful to claim- So he¡¯d been given to the people of the empire who specialized in staying alive and out of sight.


    His whole childhood was one long boot-camp, crammed to the point of blur, and rather than celebrating coming of age, he was being taught how to compromise, exploit, and manipulate- All in the name of the empire¡¯s pursuit of enduring peace and prosperity.


    Every nation had its faults of course, the empire was no different, but its goals were noble and its results, compelling. Thus far they¡¯d ensured stable trade between three nations that now serve as an economic hub for their neighbors, and there hadn¡¯t been a successful assassination attempt since the Pellar rebellion, which gave cause to found the Feathers in the first place.


    Finally righting the last crate that blocked his view of the pynma, Anvi saw the issue immediately, and had to hold back his laughter as he saw the state of the poor animal.


    The crate she¡¯d been stored in had been toppled over to the side, and somehow Fran¡¯s legs had ended up poking through the bars, getting stuck, and then suspending the startled creature upside down, where it now hung, staring at him with a confused obliviousness at its circumstances before squawking once out of curiosity.


    Sighing and shaking his head, Anvi put a shoulder against the side of the crate and put his whole weight behind restoring it to its upright position, grunting as he strained against the weight of a hanging pynma until he felt it shift off him and clatter back, level with the floor- To which he received a happy squawk from inside the crate, and moved around to the other side to help maneuver Fran¡¯s legs back through the bars.


    Once he¡¯d managed to keep her from kicking him long enough to do so, Anvi stood up and found himself face-to-face with the thankful tongue of Fran¡¯s licks, and surprisingly, a cage devoid of stinky startled ¡®aftermath¡¯ from the explosion on the beach.


    Patting the pynma on its furry head, Anvi tried to calm the beast before plopping down in front of the crate, head still drowning in the mess he¡¯d made for himself.


    A large part of him had really grown to enjoy the faux sense of freedom he¡¯d been enjoying in Mara¡¯s company, her methods sometimes extreme, but never detrimental on the larger scale, and usually her adventures took them far from spectators and casualties.


    Kali was reliable and trustworthy, and a surprisingly good teacher, if not a good friend outright. She¡¯d been with Mara before him, and he found no reason to protest the company, though Jackle was a bit of a different story. A novice was risk in dangerous situations, but, surprisingly, he seemed more adept at holding his own than he looked- A testament to the many years he spent as a monk.


    Now though, he¡¯d betrayed their trust. It didn¡¯t feel like it when he¡¯d planned to, but as soon as the strout started giving him trouble, he could feel the pangs of guilt set upon him, and they¡¯d not ceased their torment since- Mara¡¯s confrontation was just tinder to the blaze boiling within.

 Ch 12 - Fishing - Part 2

    Chapter 12


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Fishing


    Part 2</h2>


    Above deck, the trio remaining had taken up their respective posts, Kali in the crows nest, bundled tight against the night-chill that had set in mid-morning, while Mara was at the wheel and Jackle up front, ready to cast any number of spells they might need in the blackened sea.


    Behind them, the enormous thermal updraft from the explosion had pushed the cool air around it down, overfilling the sails as the down-draft pushed them away from the coastline with a chilly haste.


    Tucking a small golden timepiece back into her pocket, Mara eyed her solar sails- Pulled taught from wind, but only serving half their function, as the ash above their heads continued to thicken in preparation to fall.


    They¡¯d been at sea for a good few hours, and judging by the clip, they were probably making excellent time, but it was impossible to know without landmarks, but they were due for one any time now.


    Unknowingly on cue, two concise whistles chirped out from the crows nest, followed by three ¡®in reply¡¯- The signal for a ship, ahead on their right.


    Keeping her volume low, Mara whistled twice in reply, paused, then whistled once more- Code they¡¯d memorized together that let them communicate when unwelcome ears were near, this time asking what flag the ship was flying, if any.


    Only one chirp came back. Pirates.


    Lacking a similar method of communication for her apprentice, Mara kept her voice to a whisper as she called out to Jackle.


    ¡°Jackle- You ready?¡±


    Holding a thumb up, the raven-haired monk signaled back to his captain, tome ready and open in his other hand.


    ¡°No spells right now- Instead, I want you to practice channeling mana, but outside yourself. Focus off to your right, as far as you can, and pour mana into the water there.¡±


    Twisting to look back at Mara with a confused expression, Jackle hesitantly closed his book of spells and turned back towards where Mara had been pointing.


    Out upon the distant sea, Mara spotted the ship Kali had sighted, still a ways out and unmoving- Likely waiting in ambush for them¡­ The fools.


    It took a moment, but as she had no intention of reducing their speed, Mara saw the signs they¡¯d been sighted- Canvas dropping and lanterns lighting, just before the large brown craft creaked into motion.


    However, they had an appointment with a¡­ Different guest.


    Between them and the pirate craft, there was a line of bubbling water, trailing through the sea at the same clip they were, bisecting the path of the enemy ship.


    Looking at it constructively, Mara was rather proud of her pupil- He was able to shift a lot more mana than when she¡¯d met him, but for all the fuel she had him dumping in the water, she had no intentions of lighting it herself.


    As the remnants and associates of Anvi¡¯s old crew approached, so did something else. The clamor of vulgar men and pointy instruments was met in kind with the inclusion of a low, deep rumble, masked almost entirely by the sounds of the sea, but felt right down to the bones.


    Following the trail of mana Jackle had been leaving was a bulge in the water, fast approaching and growing larger by the second- Several ship lengths behind it, a small tip of a fin could be seen cutting through the water with violent precision.


    Seeing the pirate ship was close enough to be heard, Mara took the opportunity to call out to them before they could spit their threats.


    ¡°Ahoy! I presume your boss is up ahead with the other two ships?¡±


    Her voice, magically enhanced, boomed out across a quickly-silenced ship, the entire crew left bewildered until what seemed to be the captain regained enough sense to even try and reply.


    However, all he managed to get out was half a ¡®What?¡¯ before the lump of water hit the side of their ship- The razer sharp fin lacerating a deep gash through the center of their hull with a massive crash as it dragged the ship several meters to its right in the blink of an eye, sending the entire crew tumbling and a good number found their way overboard in the process.


    Spicing the dish up, Mara dumped a good bit more mana on the ship for good measure, send paint curling and hair falling at the sudden dosing, causing even more confusion and panic in the rapidly deteriorating ship.


    Ahead, the large swell of water dispersed as the bladed fin descended beneath the waves, indicating the sea monster was turning about.


    Seizing the wheel, Mara steered towards the path of the beast, just barely dodging the fin as it whirled around and came up for a second strike on its tasty bit of prey.


    Yet, this time, the water swelled ever larger, and more and more fin seemed to arise from the depths until it was at least half the height of their tallest mast and the scales of the fish crested above the waves, revealing a mouth large enough to swallow half a ship whole.


    Screams of rugged and burly men cried out across the waves behind them just before another crash boomed out over the quiet seas, this one much louder than the last as the barn-sized monster devoured a good chunk of ship, water, and crew in a single instant, blasting apart what little integrity their craft had left.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry- What the frack was that?! Does that live out here?¡±


    Figuring they were in the clear for a moment, Jackle had stood up from his post to yell across the ship to Mara, who absolutely feigned ignorance as she replied.


    ¡°I thought you knew- Being an archeologist and all, I assumed you knew about Leviathans.¡±


    Taking a step back, startled, Jackle looked at Mara like he didn¡¯t want to believe her, but it had nothing to do with her gas lighting him about telling him already, but more what she was telling him.


    ¡°Leviathans?¡­ Plural? You mean there¡¯s more of those?!¡±


    ¡°Oh those? Sure, they¡¯re basically just giant carp, but they¡¯re really just the small fry. The deep dark beneath us is home to many things that prefer to stay there, which we should be thankful for.¡±


    Casting a glance to the inky depths that surrounded their ship, Jackle shuddered- Making a mental note not to draw any more attention to himself than his mana already did, monsters had quite the nose for it as it was.


    Above them, two more chirps whistled out, followed by one, then two, then one more. Jackle looked up, still baffled by their code, then towards Mara, who seemed to understand- Her gaze already affixed on the horizon dead-ahead.


    ¡°Jackle, we¡¯ve got two ships in front of us. I need to have a word with their ¡®pirate king¡¯ so I want you to either join Kali up in the crows nest, or Anvi down in the cargo hold, but stay as quiet as possible.¡±


    Looking up the multiple rungs of rope that wound up to the towering heights Kali was so comfortable with, Jackle looked towards the cargo hold and gave Mara a reluctant nod. Forced to choose, he¡¯d take the stinky ¡®pet¡¯ over a windy and wobbly perch any day.


    Knowing Kali had overheard her comments and needed no further instructions, Mara watched Jackle head beneath the decks out of the corner of her eye while she kept her focus on the anchored ships they were approaching, one parked broadside, cannons drawn.You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.


    ¡°Oh¡­ You don¡¯t even want to talk first? So brutish. Not that that¡¯s surprising.¡±


    If they were going to be confrontational about it, she¡¯d serve in kind, but not knowing which ship had the man in charge left her at a bit of a dilemma. Chain of command was a rickety thing in these groups, and information was seldom shared more than needed, so an undue death or two in this case would be¡­ Annoying.


    Seeing the small sparks flicker across the many cannons mounted on the port side of the ship, Mara knew they¡¯d been called to fire, and brought an open palm up into the air, then lightly flicked her fingers upwards for the briefest of moments.


    In the distance, just before the cannons boomed their symphony, a small wave crested beneath the keel of their ship, tilting it back several degrees just at the right moment, and smokey metal exploded from the many barrels, but every round flew up and over the solar sails, crashing into the waves behind Mara¡¯s ship.


    Sailing on unimpeded, Mara flicked her hand once more as another volley launched, ensuring it too did nothing more than whistle overhead before slamming into the depths of their wake.


    Finally noticing Mara was failing to yield in any manner, the second ship unfurled its sails and began to move to flank, doubling the number of cannons trained upon their vessel- Still far too few to matter.


    Zipping down one of the ropes laced up to the crows nest, Kali dropped to the deck of the ship like a panther descending a tree and made eye contact with Mara.


    ¡°Do you have any idea how close those things were to my head?¡±


    Snorting and cracking a smile, Mara kept it light as she retorted, not willing to break her focus on the ships ahead.


    ¡°Aye, but they missed, didn¡¯t they?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s beside the point.¡±


    ¡°Exactly.¡±


    Blinking twice, Kali stared at Mara as she re-ran the confusing exchange through her head once more, only then realizing what she¡¯d meant.


    ¡°Funny. Should I join Jackle downstairs?¡±


    ¡°No no, you should probably stay up here with me- Snipe anyone pointing more than a sword our direction.¡±


    Flicking her hand up once more, Mara nearly tipped the boat in front of them before pulling her ship to the right, swinging wide to skirt the firing angle of the second ship, which proceeded to slow and sharpen its turn to try and match.


    Racing between the two, Mara used their ships momentum to demolish the distance between the bow of her ship and the aft of theirs, releasing the wheel as she lined up, and proceeded to hop over the banister to drop to the main deck of the ship.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to go knock on some doors- Pull the ship to the left once I leave, circle the other one, then loop back here to pick me up. I should be done by then.¡±


    Nodding, Kali took her post next to the wheel, bow drawn and ready as her captain proceeded to walk to the front of the ship and stepped out onto the protruding perch affixed to the front.


    Little distance remained until their speed caught up with theirs, collision seemed inevitable, but Kali trusted her friend and only placed a hand upon the wheel with the intent to turn it after Mara disembarked.


    Standing at the front her own ship, Mara flexed her fist as the rear paneling of the pirate ship sped towards her, leaned back, then swung forward, just at the point of collision.


    With a loud crack, an explosion of saw dust and wooden shrapnel blasted out from the front of the ship, but Kali couldn¡¯t feel even the slightest lurch from the impact.


    Instead, as the dust cleared, Kali saw the pirate ship had gained speed, now moving away from them with a gaping hole in its rear where Mara had ¡®disembarked¡¯.


    Inside the rear-cabin, Mara had found three very stunned people, one bound and gagged, another who looked like he¡¯d seen more pints than fights, and another who could wrestle a bear. All of which appeared equally surprised to see her standing there.


    ¡°You know, I didn¡¯t think it would be this easy, but you are rather simple after all- I assume that¡¯s the empire¡¯s new plant you¡¯ve got tied up? Which would make ¡®the ooze¡¯ over here the forger, leaving ¡®the monkey¡¯ as the big man on deck, huh?¡±


    Already leaping up from his chair, the grizzly pirate lifted the entire table by one leg and chucked it at her, full bore and without warning.


    ¡°The Monkey?! Who the frack do you think you are?!¡±


    Not even flinching, Mara stood stock-still as the wooden furniture slammed into her and proceeded to shattered upon her like particle board upon stone.


    Looking down at her fingernails, Mara flicked away some debris from beneath them, then ran her thumb over a couple, ensuring they were still smooth to the touch.


    ¡°The woman you intended to steal from of course. Did you even question what kind of person would have that much gold on a ship without cannons?¡±


    Seeing the table disintegrate upon her unblinking gaze robbed ¡®the monkey¡¯ of any remaining rage he might have had, like a puppy realizing it just picked a fight with the wrong dog in the pound.


    ¡°Uh. No?¡±


    Nodding, Mara walked over to bulbous forger, who was staring at her with wide eyes of terrified silence, and leaned down to pickup several stamped documents.


    ¡°You really should have, but I think everyone here deserves a chance to learn from their mistakes¡­ Ah- There it is. ¡®Rhuban¡¯ right?¡±


    Directing her question towards the gagged man, Mara received a series of frantic nods as he tried to speak.


    ¡°Perfect. I need you to pay a toll.¡±


    Not bothering to unbind him from the chair, or ungag him, Mara grabbed the back panel of his seat and began to drag him towards the door leading to the deck of the ship.


    Behind her, the pirate captain scrambled to understand what was happening, and what he could possibly do to salvage his pride.


    ¡°Where the hell do you think you¡¯re going with him?¡±


    Striding over with legs nearly twice as long as Mara¡¯s, ¡®the monkey¡¯ proceeded to make the second mistake in just as many minutes. As he reached out to grab his captive, Mara simply stopped and turned to face the pirate lord.


    ¡°This way.¡±


    Reaching out, Mara grabbed ahold of the extensively hairy arm outstretched towards Rhuban, pivoted, and swung the monkey of a man overhead and straight out upon the deck of his own ship, slamming him into the main mast with a deafening crack of both bone and wood before he dropped like a sack of spuds into an unmoving mass of silent stares.


    Grabbing ahold of Rhuban¡¯s chair once more, Mara proceeded to drag him out through the middle of the entire pirate crew, wooden legs squeaking as they scraped upon the deck, but no one dared make a move after seeing what just happened to their captain.


    Approaching the port-side of the ship, Mara kicked open the docking banister just as Kali slid up with her own ship.


    Giving Kali a thumbs up, Mara chucked Rhuban across the gap, then jumped across herself before picking him back up, the middle-aged human groaning and wincing from the impact, but without the chair, now in too many pieces to be of any sort of restraint.


    Turning towards the upper deck, Mara saw Kali had come to see the newcomer and called out to her to satiate her curiosity.


    ¡°He¡¯s fine, I¡¯ll fill you in later- For now, get us back on course.¡±


    ¡°At your command, captain!¡±


    Raising her eyebrows and rolling her eyes, Mara turned back to the very disgruntled man she¡¯d just rescued. Where were the manners?


    ¡°Alright. So, first, I know you¡¯re a Feather, and I know you¡¯ve been captured for a little while now. Your strout¡¯s been ¡®wildin out¡¯, dunno why your handlers didn¡¯t think that was odd. Second, I¡¯ve got no quarrel with you, but I do need you for a bit of leverage, so¡­ Let¡¯s call you a hostage, and there¡¯s no sense in hurting a hostage, right?¡±


    Blinking, then shaking his head fervently, Rhuban attempted to agree. Whoever this woman was, she was far more dangerous than her prior captors and survival was paramount.


    ¡°Good! Agreeing on things is the first step towards being friends. I¡¯m gunna ungag you now, that thing looks gross, so please don¡¯t scream or anything.¡±


    Hesitantly nodding once, Rhuban felt the rancid sweat-soaked undergarment dislodge from his cheeks with a feeling that was both moist and dry at the same time, causing him to gag on the sensation alone.


    ¡°Ewwww¡­ Reductive and revolting. What a combo that man was.¡±


    Tossing the pair of ¡®shorts¡¯ overboard, Mara saw her new captive was in much need of anything to wash the taste out of his mouth and whisked a glass cup of clean water out of thin air, then made a motion with her other hand, severing the ropes that bound his hands.


    ¡°Here, drink- Then we¡¯ll find you some food downstairs.¡±


    Practically choking on the cold liquid splashing against the back of his throat, Rhuban pounded on his chest and managed to gulp down the feeling as he felt the cracks on his lips burn from the sudden moisture, but all were minor inconveniences to the relief that fresh water brought to his body.


    ¡°Oh thank Somni- You might be terrifying, but I will never be more thankful for a glass of water than I am now.¡±


    ¡°Me? Terrifying? Kali! Am I scary?¡±


    Calling out to her impromptu helmsman, Mara heard her soft voice echo back, a little more deadpan than usual.


    ¡°Yes boss.¡±


    ¡°Oh. Hm. That¡¯s a new tone from her.¡±


    Glancing up towards the deck above the cabin, then back to Mara, Rhuban wasn¡¯t sure what to make of the woman in front of him. One moment, she was a force of nature, the next, joking with her friends like a cadet. ¡®Terrifying¡¯ did not do her justice in the slightest. Manic? Maniacal?¡­ Monstrous? At least one of those was valid.


    ¡°How¡¯d you know where to find me? Do you work for the emperor?¡±


    ¡°Hangon- What part of ¡®leverage¡¯ did you miss? Why would I need a feather for a bargaining chip if I worked for your boss? Everyone else would just want you dead, and the only other people who could exploit your position just lost their golden goose.¡±


    Realizing he actually was a hostage of some kind, even without the bindings or the torture, Rhuban looked to his feet, then back towards his new captor.


    ¡°So¡­ What then? You¡¯re just gunna let me sit around until you can trade me?¡±


    ¡°Sort-of. I got someone you might want to meet- Does the name ¡®Anvi¡¯ ring a bell?¡±


    At just the mention of his name, all the pieces clicked together, and Rhuban¡¯s eyes shot wide. The woman who¡¯d just rescued him was the very same woman who¡¯d ¡®abducted¡¯ the former assignee, leading to his uphill assignment, integrating into a exceedingly paranoid pirate league.


    ¡°Anvi¡¯s here?¡­¡±


    ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s head downstairs, he can introduce you to Fran.¡±


    Whoever, or whatever, ¡®Fran¡¯ was, Rhuban wasn¡¯t sure he wanted to know, but it didn¡¯t look like his captor was going to give him much of a choice, even if she was being polite about it.

 Ch 13 - Roots - Part 1

    Chapter 13


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Roots


    Part 1</h2>


    Hours later, still sitting in their chair, Dante¡¯s gaze remained affixed upon the binary light source that waltzed about at the center of this inverted world.


    However confounding and physically impossible it was, it still wasn¡¯t the object of Dante¡¯s focus, it just happened to be in the center of their view, courtesy of the large window it had morphed out of the Obelisk¡¯s hull- A trickery of atomic alignments, the material was still just as solid, but now it ferried photons through a lattice of specifically aligned electron channels.


    All of this child¡¯s play for the tools and understanding at Dante¡¯s disposal- Even without the Obelisk, they¡¯d fashioned their chassis with all the bells and whistles they might need, yet the quarry they now chased was a different kind of beast all together.


    ¡°What did she say?¡­ ¡®A temporal force of self¡¯?¡­¡±


    Manipulation was one thing, her explanation had been thorough enough to iterate upon, but measurement was another. The scans of her brainwaves had been helpful comparisons in refining the practice, but it still held no tangible relation to the movement of this temporal force.


    Raising their right hand, Dante didn¡¯t even need to mime Mara¡¯s specific actions any more, a miniature table appearing in their palm with nary more than a flicker of a thought, a perfect recreation at scale, and quickly tossed over their shoulder into a pile of several hundred equally identical pieces in varying sizes.


    ¡°A ¡®conceptual energy¡¯- That was it. Understanding, intent, and projection. Three steps to manipulate and create, limited only by ¡®imagination¡¯- A process utilizing the ¡®in between¡¯ of the conscious and subconscious to envision a different perspective than what¡¯s present, which, when understood, can be ¡®curated¡¯ to produce ideal results.¡±


    Drawing up from their own energy, Dante¡¯s palm lit up into a laser light show as they ¡®printed¡¯ another copy of the miniature table, this time by altering quarks to generate the needed quantum waves to produce the necessary atoms at all the right places.


    In nearly the same amount of time, Dante had another identical copy of Mara¡¯s table, indistinguishable from the pile behind them, yet this one required a substantial investment of energy, while the former appeared cost-free, but there was more to it than a simple exchange.


    ¡°Somniantes.¡±


    Crushing the printed table in their palm, it was this complication that Dante had been stuck on since Mara had left- Mana, no, this entire world was alive, and manipulating it was an inherent tug of war between oneself and the continuity of a chaotic world, obscured in plain sight.


    Without awareness of this, some way to measure one¡¯s own continuity as this process takes place, it was a statistical inevitability one would lose eventually, and what then?


    Extrapolating from what Mara had said, Dante knew the answer- Conceptual drowning, or ¡®mech madness¡¯- Though, now that they fully understood it, Dante had to agree. It was a rather reductive term for a far more rampant issue that could easily afflict any number of things, including organics.


    Preventing such a fate was paramount, especially if they had any chance of utilizing such a resource for the Cabal- Even their current usage of this ¡®conceptual energy¡¯ was starting to become concerning, was there a limit or rate it couldn¡¯t exceed? What was the threshold to this ¡®madness¡¯, the point at which ¡®Somniantes¡¯ begins to creep upon one¡¯s sense of self?


    Still staring into the distant sky, Dante felt like their cortex was on fire- Which, it frankly was quite hot, air steaming away from their metallic skull as it ground the same ruts into its plasma over and over again. What they really needed was some way to step between this process, to both measure it and protect them from the ill-effects, but with no more than concepts as suspects, they¡¯d been stumped for hours on how to pursue them.


    ¡°What if- No¡­ But could I create that? Like a secure connection¡­ It¡¯s all concepts, right? ¡®Conceptual energy¡¯- What¡¯s to stop me from creating a concept for myself? A ¡®feedback loop¡¯ in the process perhaps?¡±


    Dante paused, the fully formed idea waiting for just a wave of their hand to be thrust into the ether- Something felt off, like the idea was sound, but it was still missing something before it wanted to emerge from their mind.Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    Thinking it over, Dante couldn¡¯t quite see the hangup themselves, but, while ¡®feelings¡¯ were rather new, they were rather hard to ignore, and something felt off.


    ¡°Oh! Of course. An independent ¡®thing¡¯ needs a name¡­¡±


    However, as they thought about potential denominations, another issue became apparent. What it had in mind was a construct based in concepts, something that could observe and instruct in place of one¡¯s self and mitigate any potential ramifications from doing so, while also measuring that very same ¡®displacement¡¯ by comparing the instructor to the substitute post-manipulation.


    Yet, if it were to operate as designed, any methods of conveying that information back into tangible form would require additional manipulations, increasing the probability of ¡®corruption¡¯- What it needed was a way to bridge that gap, an action done in the tangible that could be reflected against in the conceptual. A middle-man to the middle-man, in tandem, functioning as a hybrid system capable of measuring and transposing the ¡®price¡¯.


    For the first time since Mara¡¯s departure, Dante took their gaze of the sun-singularity pair and took in the room around them, feeling another novel sensation overcome their cortex as an idea began to form.


    The command room felt empty- Stagnant even. In a way that was more than just the stillness present in the air. It was as devoid of content as it was purpose, now it was only a husk that, if left to rot, would become a problem in and of itself- The sub-sentience at its helm was as just as vulnerable to the ways of this world as they were. Yet, it was between these two problems that a solution began to form.


    ¡°Considering the raw composition¡­ There¡¯s bound to be a considerable amount of waste in the process but¡­¡±


    Standing up, Dante turned towards the large hemisphere in the center of the room, their old ¡®receptacle¡¯ at the helm of a ship designed to pierce the very walls of reality itself. Now a hollow shell- A resource to be utilized. The idea would be a two step process, done in parallel- One tangible, one not.


    Drafting up the last command the Obelisk would ever execute, Dante set the ship to self-destruct- A process that would de-atomize the entire structure systematically until nothing remained. A protocol designed to erase any trace of the Cabal¡¯s intrusion- However, Dante had no intentions of letting all that energy go to waste.


    Holding up a palm towards the house-sized construct, Dante focused their intentions, and voiced the only words they had to- Having finally settled on a name for the madness it was about to attempt.


    ¡°Reflective Effigy Gauging Notable Anomalies Taxing Sentience- R.E.G.N.A.T.S. will be your name.¡±


    With a crack that sounded louder than thunder, the peak of the obelisk erupted above Dante¡¯s head- Unleashing a literal nuclear amount of energy as it began burning down the ship like a wax candle.


    With all regards to self preservation, Dante knew they should move- Evacuate to shore at a minimum, but they were only halfway done, the naming was just the start of the process, they still needed to mold the ¡®clay¡¯.


    Mentally grasping at the sudden abundance of energy and loose atoms exploding above their head, Dante set about sewing it into the growing construct of mana known as ¡®Regnats¡¯.


    Knowing they didn¡¯t have a lot of time for creativity, Dante pulled from a myriad of its own internal designs and translated it into something the mana could mime- With an interface to boot.


    [[ Regnats Initialized - Link Established ]]


    Dante¡¯s facial ¡®muscles¡¯ shifted as a smile formed upon their face, the words of what used to be the Obelisk¡¯s intelligence, now reforming in mana as the actual ship burned away.


    Knowing the process would continue without further intervention, Dante shifted to the second task on their priority list- Escaping the home they¡¯d set ablaze.


    Glancing up, Dante checked the timer they¡¯d started alongside the ignition, seven-point-three seconds had elapsed, and already the walls bordering the tip of the ship, along with some of the window had dissolved into a binding light and a tremendous amount of heat.


    Anything short of the high-density carbon that composed the ship would have evaporated in milliseconds, but that just spoke to the crushing abundance of atoms the Cabal had compacted into their composite lattice.


    Looking about, Dante saw two options- Head out the way it had prepared for Mara, or¡­ Make a new way out.


    Quickly making their way to a spot on the wall they judged to be about water-level, Dante placed a metal palm upon the carbon-composite and hesitated, glancing up once more.


    With the Obelisk in ¡®shutdown¡¯, a fact reinforced by the blooming progression of thermal expansion happening above their head, Dante had to make their way through the material themselves- A task which, left to their old methods, would have taken too long, the heat already building to a temperature that threatened multiple safe thresholds across their chassis.


    Thankfully, Dante had other methods at their disposal, and that meant a prime opportunity for a test-run of sorts.


    Quickly envisioning the manipulations they wanted to impart, Dante stopped short of casting the mana themselves, already feeling the electric tendrils of ''Regnats¡¯ probing around their plasma- Molding into shape until the mana began to take hold and a cutout of a door silently wore its way into the wall till air began racing past, escaping out the new-formed divisions.


    Taking their palm away from the newly-made door, Dante leaned back, then planted a foot firmly against the surface and shoved, putting all the force they could muster into kicking the dislodged block of high-density carbon as far as they could.


    Feeling the stone begin to shift off the ground and the weight leave their foot, Dante shifted and leapt after it, foot first, further kicking it out of the danger zone, now as a pair.

 Ch 13 - Roots - Part 2

    Chapter 13


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Roots


    Part 2</h2>


    With a ground-quaking impact, Dante and the ¡®door¡¯ they¡¯d carved out of the Obelisk¡¯s hull slammed into midst of the scorched-down section of jungle, carving a deep trench as the hulking mass of solidified carbon came to rest in a field of metal scrap and scattered bits of foliage.


    Behind them, the Obelisk had reached peak burn-rate, exhausting all its thermal energy upwards with a plume of exhaust designed to footprint like a typical volcanic eruption- Standard protocol the Cabal had implemented, albeit reluctantly, given the potential for scuttling in a first-contact situation.


    Off to the left of the hard-to-ignore destruction of their old home, Dante could see where Mara¡¯s ship had been beached, however most of it was obscured in a thick cloud of dust that stretched for at least half a kilometer further to the left. From a distance, it was hard to see what the source of all the disturbance was, but the sails of her ship were gone, so there was little reason to concern themselves with it.


    From here, Dante was relatively safe from the immediate threat, but the ash produced would be an issue for the next few days, and everything within a good five to ten kilometers would be overrun with the stuff soon enough- All they had left to do was test if they were truly free to travel, or if the wooden boundary in the distance would still bar their path.


    Stepping off their ¡®stone plinth¡¯, Dante spared once last glance to their former vessel, then set off inland, heading towards the mass of jungle they¡¯d not needed to cleanse of their own mistakes.


    Their pace was neither slow nor rushed, it would take a bit more than some ash to even begin to interfere with their movement, and with the improvements they¡¯d made to their own chassis¡¯ cortex, power was trivial, and if their research continued to yield results, long-term fuel concerns would be a thing of the past.


    Striding with all the speed of a casual walk coupled with the gait of a three-meter tall mech, and finding a rather stark lack of interesting things to see in the nearby area, Dante saw the time as an opportunity to once again focus on their ever-growing fixation, more specifically, their latest project- Regnats.


    A hybrid constructed of a concept suspended in mana and airborne nanites intended to serve as an intermediary between the manipulator and the manipulated mana- To both protect from potential backlash while enabling further study of the nebulous ¡®force through time¡¯ that might solve all the Cabal¡¯s problems, beyond rudimentary energy concerns.


    As the first bits of ash began to fall through the air around them, Dante focused on the particulate, each laced with a veritable payload of nanites converted from the raw energy and byproducts still being produced from the Obelisk¡¯s disintegration- Courtesy of their last minute mana-work.


    Now ¡®in range¡¯ once again, Dante wasted no time in re-establishing connection with now the literal cloud network, eager to find out how the first ¡®test¡¯ went, and within moments had received a return message from their initial handshake.


    [[ Regnats Reconnected - One Pending Article ]]


    Emotions were still new to them, but after so many false-starts, that singular message was the first real sign of success since they¡¯d landed in Somniantes- Not only was Regnats still operational after using it to manipulate mana, it also appeared to have achieved its secondary goal.


    Selecting the article, Dante wasn¡¯t sure what they would find, they¡¯d left the means to the mana to figure out, but the final report was handled by the nanite half- The hope being the combination could discern more than the sum of their parts, lending a lens to the indiscernible, and a pen to the indescribable. However, as the response packet began streaming in, Dante had to come to a stop as they read and re-read the ¡®article¡¯, the results far from anything they¡¯d been expecting.


    [[ Anomalous Event Detected - ¡®Subtract Material¡¯ ]]


    || Disturbance Origin: ¡®Dante¡¯


    || Intention: Void selective parts of an non-sentient construct


    || Investment: Erosion, Solids, Time


    Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.|| Conflicts: None


    || Converted: 724 Grains


    || Exceptions: N/A


    || Response: Log & Defer


    While it had left the analysis to the mana to compose, what Dante was reading was far from anything they¡¯d intended- Multiple things in the ¡®article¡¯ eluded definition- From the term ¡®grains¡¯ to the presence of fields like ¡®conflicts¡¯ and ¡®exceptions¡¯.


    By all metrics, what Regnats had produced was so far beyond astounding, it was actually suspicious. As if their efforts to interface with the exchange of mana had actually interfaced with something more.


    Glancing around once more, just to check they weren¡¯t being watched, Dante resumed their walk under the ever sprinkling distribution of nanite-laced ash, their mind awash with extrapolating potentials around the surprising output of their creation.


    The report indicated a far more detailed understanding of the mechanisms at play than Mara¡¯s simple definitions, but yielded little in the way of further instruction.


    Reading it over again, it appeared that the basic concept of their surface intention had been recorded, along with their name and some composing concepts as attributes of the intended ¡®disturbance¡¯- A rather verbose breakdown for a relatively minor manipulation.


    However, the most interesting, and potentially concerning, bit of Regnats¡¯ report was the ¡®grains¡¯- A named metric for mana. Though, why it was called that, or why the term ¡®converted¡¯ was used instead of ¡®cost¡¯ was all rather curious.


    It was one thing for Regnats to extrapolate information from its readings, it was a whole other to assemble a report full of assumptions, omissions, and novel terms- Tell tale signs they¡¯d accidentally plugged into something far more tangible than ¡®free floating mana¡¯.


    At a high-level, the cogs in play were relatively simple, Regnats was just to operate as an intermediary, and the nanites¡¯ programing would never have produced a report like article Dante was still pouring over- Which meant one of two things, either their little ¡®mana construct¡¯ was far more adept than it had any right to be.


    Gazing towards the jungle ahead, both halves of Dante¡¯s mental cortex were abuzz with potential inroads to the conundrum, but none were an answer outright. Some part of them felt like they¡¯d peered into a deep and hidden part of the world, too precious to tread further, but another wanted a more concrete answer- Something they could build upon.


    With what little rationality they could apply to the situation, Dante turned their attention towards the composition for clues- Creating a construct out of temporal force was already fraught with unknowns, the whole concept was illogical in the first place, so perhaps there was room for a bit more.


    ¡°If mana is a force through time, not space, then it wouldn¡¯t be out of bounds to consider that a construct built within it would be bound by different rules than that of spatial endeavors¡­¡±


    The idea of it was preposterous of course, but the more they considered it, the more it made sense in a backwards kind-of way. What if mana constructs existed in a way beyond time? What if they were now interfacing with something more than just their own inputs, but rather a sum of all future inputs- A paradoxical headache, but one that offered some level of explanation.


    Pondering the hypothesis while they strolled ever closer to the jungle, Dante wasn¡¯t finding any holes with the logic, but the proposition of ¡®creating¡¯ a thing that has always existed was strange. The ramifications alone were inherently unpredictable, and the feature set of such a construct would be unfathomable.


    Dante knew what they had designed, and the subsequent nanites that it puppeted, but if their theory was right, the mana-half had a whole host of potential functionalities that were impossible to discern until discovered- Or, more likely, created.


    Their mental state in a mix of confusion, excitement, and stress, Dante wasn¡¯t sure if they should be enthusiastic about the potential or terrified of the ramifications, but, for the moment, emotions would have to take a back seat- There were still other questions to answer, and seeking their resolution could easily lend light to the situation.


    The most pressing, and potentially pursuable, question Dante had was about one particular thing- ¡®Grains¡¯. Where did that term come from? What did it represent? There was clearly a specific quantity involved, so what factors led to such a result?


    Suddenly, a moment of inspiration hit Dante squarely in the center of their cortex as two tangent ideas came together like lightning in a bottle, and they completely stopped in their tracks.


    What they really needed was to be able to query Regnats, dive further into its responses- Functionality it hadn¡¯t initially intended, but might already be there¡­


    Pulling up the data it had from its last mana manipulation, Dante looked over the analysis, stopping as their gaze hovered over the renegade metric.


    Trusting their ¡®gut¡¯, Dante followed the same steps they would to manipulate mana, but targeted towards the unknown term, lacing their intent with an ambiguous desire to know more- And were rather surprised when a new data packet from Regnats suddenly appeared on the network.


    [[ Granular Analysis of ¡®Subtract Material¡¯ ]]


    || Curiosity: 4


    || Intuition: 200


    || Emotion: 150


    || Validation: 140


    || Reflection: 60


    || Novelty: 170


    || Total Grains: 724


    ¡°Great. More terms- But¡­ It appears these are types of ¡®grains¡¯? I thought it was a measurement of mana¡­ Perhaps it still is?¡±


    Once again feeling the need to glance about, as if someone were lurking over their shoulder, Dante found naught but scorched ruins, but opted to continue making their way to the jungle with a bit more haste than before- Once was a coincidence, twice was a pattern, even if it was just a rogue feeling.

 Ch 14 - Feathers - Part 1

    Chapter 14


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Feathers


    Part 1</h2>


    ¡°Lapis shell, wings that shimmer, the hand of land carries founding wealth, the eye sights forty. Or, as decoded¡­ Sea-colored vessel, silver sails, inbound to Aubroastrem with several hundred thousand gold coin, bearing one-forty.¡±


    Looking up from the collection of papers she¡¯d picked up when rescuing Rhuban, Mara¡¯s gaze was meant for only one person as she gestured towards them with the stack of loose-leaf.


    ¡°This was you, no?¡±


    When Mara had descended to the cargo-hold with a new face following behind her, the last thing Anvi had been expecting was for her to air his mistake in full view of both Jackle and the mystery newcomer, but here he was, on the proverbial plank regardless.


    Sparing a glance towards the raven-haired mage, Anvi could see he was as confused as he was hurt, while the man behind Mara wore a face quite similar, one of sheer surprise dashed with a bit of fear.


    Sighing, Anvi¡¯s gaze searched for answers in the floorboards, for he knew there was no fighting the tide that was Mara.


    ¡°Aye... T¡¯was mistake.¡±


    Tucking the stack of papers to her side as she crossed her arms, Mara cocked an eyebrow and gave him a look that could be misinterpreted as cautious trepidation, but Anvi knew what she meant by it- ¡®Cut the crap.¡¯


    ¡°A mistake? Yeah¡­ Most certainly didn¡¯t go the way you expected- At all. Buuut¡­ No harm¡¯s done that wasn¡¯t meant to be done, now that I have this little letter~ So perhaps you¡¯d like to explain why you sent this, and maybe you can alleviate further harm to those that care about you.¡±


    Eyeing Jackle with her final words, Mara met his gaze for a moment, indicating he should at least hear Anvi out before coming to any rash conclusions.


    As Jackle look to him for answers, Anvi could see he had choice to make- One that, really, already had answer. Duty. But to whom? His country or his comrades?


    Before joining Mara¡¯s crew, Anvi would never have wavered in such a choice, his family was his home, and his home was his country. A child of shadow nobility, purview to both the good and bad of it all, but raised to see it for the benefit the reign brought. Why wouldn¡¯t he want to help? To mitigate the harms and maximize the boons by his own hands?


    His cause had been noble and just, his skills put to full potential, but now that very same history had come to clash with those that had shown him a different form of family. One that championed the individual and prided their faults for they made them unique.


    Together, they¡¯d cultivated an atmosphere that had felt more like home had than the word had ever earned before, and some part of him had still felt like he needed to his duty, warn his country of such a disruptive force of wealth, but in doing so, he¡¯d cast everything they had into the wind, only for it to fly right back in his face.


    Anvi knew what Mara¡¯s non-verbal look said, and he found no room to disagree- If he had any chance of saving what he had come to value without truly realizing it until it was at threat, he had no choice but to come clean.


    ¡°I¡¯m a Feather of t¡¯ Limeren Empire- Me old post was with pirates nearby ¡®til she showed up. When Mara barged in, I seen her for what she was- A greater threat than any pirate could ever dream to be, n¡¯ prioritized justly. I ain¡¯t wrong about that, but I¡¯ve never once reported ¡®er actions, ¡®til now. That much coin in the wrong hands could collapse trade, devalue the lot to nothing, but I made mistake¡­ Her hands are not the wrong ones.¡±


    Looking around the room as he spoke, Anvi could see Mara¡¯s expression had, thankfully, begun to soften, but both Jackle and the newcomer seemed even more surprised now, and still appeared to harbor some confusion.


    ¡°When I took t¡¯ offer to join her, t¡¯was not for what I wanted, but for what mine country needed. Now though, with hindsight, I intend to take that offer once more, proper this time, because now I see what I lacked before.¡±


    Walking over to Mara as a cautious squawk cried from the caged beast behind him, but Anvi held no reservations. Approaching her, Anvi looked into her eyes, a deep abyss of green marred with gold, and made his request clear without speaking a word.Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    Tilting her head ever so slightly to the side, Mara uncrossed her arms and plucked the intercepted letter from her small stack of papers, held it up as if to re-read it once more, then slowly offered it out towards the dwarven barbarian.


    Wasting no time, Anvi snatched the proffered letter and tore it to shreds- Signifying more than just the end to a humbling incident, but a new beginning, proper this time. However, as he finished, Mara wasn¡¯t looking at him, but rather the black-robed mage.


    ¡°Well Jackle- Questions, qualms, or concerns?¡±


    With pursed lips askew to one side, Jackle crossed his arms as he leaned into the barrel he was half-sitting on, wobbling it back and forth for a moment before he settled his thoughts.


    ¡°Can¡¯t say I¡¯m pleased to learn all of this out of the blue, but I can¡¯t say I¡¯m that surprised either- Except about you being a Feather, that¡¯s¡­ Surprising to say the least, I always held a different view of those who entertained that kind of work. Yet, topically, if you¡¯re fine with it Mara, I can sweep it under the rug too- Your snoring might be awful, but I don¡¯t hold any ill-will towards you Anvi.¡±


    Clapping her hands, Mara smiled for the first time since she descended to the cargo hold, then gestured towards the still clearly baffled newcomer standing aside her.


    ¡°Perfect! Then that brings us the second issue on deck, which happens to be tangentially related to all that- Our new guest, ¡®Rhuban¡¯, he happens to be a Feather too.¡±


    Glancing over, Mara could see the panic in Rhuban¡¯s eyes as she put the proverbial spotlight upon him, while Anvi¡¯s expression shifted to one of pure shock, mouth agape at who had just witnessed him renouncing his old life.


    From across the room, Jackle uncrossed his arms and leaned forward to get a better look down the aisle at this ¡®Rhuban¡¯. Pale skin, human, a bit malnourished, bruised in places, and had a head full of brown hair with a few chunks missing- All indicators of torture, but none seemed recent enough to question if Mara had a hand in them.


    ¡°Two feathers? What, are you collecting them now or something?¡±


    Hearing Jackle¡¯s comment, Mara raised her eyebrows in mock confusion as she gestured from Rhuban to Anvi.


    ¡°What do you mean? There¡¯s only one feather here- Anvi¡¯s just a dwarf who happens to have a wide variety of skills.¡±


    Seeing he wasn¡¯t going to get a straight answer out of her, Jackle sighed and rolled his eyes before gesturing to the newcomer.


    ¡°So what¡¯s the deal with this ¡®Rhuban¡¯ then, did you just bring him down here to cement Anvi¡¯s ¡®retirement¡¯?¡±


    ¡°Mmmm¡­ Somewhat.¡±


    Turning back to Rhuban, Mara gave him a smile before addressing him directly.


    ¡°Translating that letter cost you a lot- Wanna see what it was all about?¡±


    To Rhuban, Mara¡¯s expression was almost comforting, but some part of her almost seemed eager for him to agree, yet, like a tempting seductress, she had his curiosity firmly within her grasp.


    ¡°Ehh¡­ Yeah I do. Shouldn¡¯t¡­ But I do. And if you were gunna kill me for knowing, you¡¯d have already done it, so sod it- I wanna see it.¡±


    ¡°I figured you¡¯d might~¡±


    Expecting her to guide him further into the cargo-hold, potentially past, or worse, into, the cage where they kept a wild Pynma of all things, Rhuban was staunchly surprised when Mara fished a small cube from her pocket and tossed it towards the open ground.


    In a single instant, just as the dice-sized object impacted the wooden floor, it expanded into a chest large enough to be mistaken for a sarcophagus, to which Mara promptly kicked the lid off of- Revealing a wealth of coins that seemed more apt to find in a royal vault.


    Stepping back out of reflex alone, Rhuban cried out in shock as his brain caught up to what had just happened and what was now sitting in front of him, tangible and indisputable.


    ¡°Where did you even¡­ No- Who did you steal this from?¡±


    Laughing at how he¡¯d asked, Mara leaned over and plucked a gold coin from the hoard and tossed it to Rhuban without elaboration before turning back and re-seating the lid upon the stone chest.


    Looking it over, Rhuban could see it had the official seal of the five peninsulas, appeared to weigh the same, and felt authentic in the hand, all very worrying. If this was counterfeit, it was good, too good. A chest that size would just be the start, making the issue much larger than just an excess of currency, as per Anvi¡¯s worries. But if it was real¡­ Well then, where had she gotten it all?


    Rhuban really wanted to cast a verification spell on it, but if he were to reveal he could cast then this Mara might impose even further restrictions on him- Eliminating any chance of a surprise escape.


    ¡°To appease your curiosity, as far as I know, they¡¯re all genuine. They just recently came into our possession due to some good fortune on our part. You can keep that one- We¡¯ve got plenty to spare.¡±


    Slapping a palm upon the stone chest, Mara shrank the entire thing back down to its miniature form and snatched it out of the air before tucking it back into her pocket.


    ¡°Oi, Mara- Not that it be my place to question, but I got some experience with them, do you think it wise giving that to a Feather?¡±


    Nodding, somewhat eagerly, Mara looked between Anvi and Rhuban.


    ¡°Oh yeah. If things go well, he¡¯ll likely be taking a good chunk of it to his boss, with some to spare for his troubles if he¡¯d like.¡±


    Feeling the air had lightened a bit, Anvi tried of a bit jesting, though in hindsight, he rather wished he hadn¡¯t.


    ¡°Ohh- He gets a cut? What about the wee little people you drag along with you?¡±


    As her eyes lit up, Anvi watched as a wicked grin grew upon Mara¡¯s face, reserved just for him.


    ¡°Mmm, well¡­ Jackle and Kali are welcome to as much as they¡¯d like once we get to town, but you? You have to go explain yourself to your hunting teacher, and if she forgives you¡­ Then I suppose you can help yourself as well, but only after you¡¯ve come clean- Omission is still lying after all.¡±


    Glancing out of the corner of her eyes, Mara met Jackle¡¯s gaze for the smallest of moments, knowing full well what he was thinking.

 Ch 14 - Feathers - Part 2

    Chapter 14


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Feathers


    Part 2</h2>


    ¡°So Rhuban, any idea who I should drop you off with?¡±


    Turning to her ¡®guest¡¯ with a hand on the helm, Mara eyed the brown-haired spy. It had been three days since their ¡®explosive¡¯ departure from the unnamed island, and now their destination was in sight, just a tiny lumpy dot in the distant horizon.


    In that time, she¡¯d talked with him about a myriad of subjects, but nothing in regards to his work or anything that would violate his secrecy. It all felt like a trap, but for the life of him, Rhuban couldn¡¯t figure out her angle. Even now, she¡¯d phrased her question to avoid pressuring him for information.


    At any point she could have done as her prior captors did, not that they managed to capitalize upon their feat for long, but she seemed to be deliberately acting opposite. Since she had introduced him to the crew, he¡¯d been given free roam of the ship and two hearty meals a day, enjoyed in good company, and they weren¡¯t even eating rations but proper dishes made with fresh ingredients.


    At this point, even if she were to tail him, he¡¯d be half inclined to introduce her himself, but protocol was protocol for a reason. ¡®Beware the sweets, for that¡¯s how they eats.¡¯


    Thinking back to his training, countless days spent learning and reinforcing the knowledge and skills that would come to define his double life, an old Fae had cropped up in the midst of it. A saying his grandmother was fond of in her days of dusk, when her mind was slipping back to thoughts of childhood, but one that seemed all the more relevant as he looked upon the grey haired woman with emerald eyes, her youthfulness both deceiving and disarming- Her demeanor was that of a rogue prince, confident, carefree, and calculating. A troubling trifecta in the best of circumstances, but all the more concerning masked by such a timid facade.


    As nice as she¡¯d been to him, even going so far as to rescue and pamper him, Rhuban saw her for what she was- Someone who had a far too intimate knowledge of their organization to be wandering about unmonitored. In a certain light, she¡¯d already kidnapped two of their members and head-quarters still had no idea what she was doing.


    He¡¯d read the report before taking on the task to re-infiltrate the pirate band, all they really had on her was what Anvi had written to them in his last note- The last message his strout ever delivered before it was retired in his absence.


    They had her name, a rough description, and a claim of force that made absolutely no sense for anything but a dragon, yet none who¡¯d read it could really believe someone like that existed- Or didn¡¯t want to, and so they¡¯d ruled Anvi a deserter in his absence.


    Though, glancing back to the dwarf leaning against the banisters behind him, now it seemed he actually was one, and for all his own preconceptions, he had no choice but to acknowledge the truth in what Anvi had written to their superiors- This was woman was dangerous.


    Trusting her seemed folly, but Rhuban could see how Anvi was playing this- A long con to keep an inside ear, one he¡¯d be sure to commune to their higher-ups and clear his name. That is, if he could make it back to Limeren without a tail.


    ¡°Tinker Town. I¡¯ve got a cousin who runs a shop on second and fifteen.¡±


    Rhuban wasn¡¯t sure if she had a truth totem, so he hadn¡¯t lied, but he wasn¡¯t about to tell her who he was actually planning to see- He¡¯d just lay low there until he was confident they weren¡¯t following him.


    Nodding, Mara set her eyes on Aubroastrem, the slowly growing mass in the distance- One of the largest islands in the area, second only to Limeren, and also known as the Five Peninsulas, a namesake granted in respect to its particular geography and politics.


    Rhuban¡¯s destination was the second of the four peninsulas that reached out towards them like claws upon the sea, the first being The Isle of Coin, a hub of markets and homes crammed together to serve trade, both domestic and foreign.Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    The third was the Mages Monastery, an isle of academia and faith, interwoven since its founding, but a leading source of many fine mages, independent and those loyal to the cloth.


    The fourth isle was the only tendril they couldn¡¯t visit- Not without invitation of course. Nekropolis- A district that could best be described as a utopic dictatorship, ruled over by a lich who treated his citizens to a life of ease and luxury, waited on hand and foot by undead servants till their final days- The only cost was undying loyalty, a price their lord Nekron ensured was paid posthumously.


    The fifth peninsula formed a large portion of the land mass on the opposite side of the island, but most of it was untamed wilds past the large ice-capped mountain that served as the central spoke. Instead, the fifth district took root upon the fertile foothills that served as the hub that connected the other four isles- Known as Nature¡¯s Garden, it was home to a wide variety of beast-folk who preferred the simple and slow life away from the hustle and bustle of the cities, and consequently, grew most of the food for the rest of island.


    As they began to approach the island, and Mara found herself steering around other vessels coming and going amongst the isles, she shifted their trajectory towards the second isle- Tinker Town.


    Not that dissimilar from its neighbor, this isle had a sprinkling of shops that sold a fair range of eclectic goods, but most of it was the home to the crazed crafters that fiddled with the fringes of what was known and what had yet to be uncovered.


    Explosions and fires were not that uncommon here- A fact that was reinforced as one of the first buildings in sight was no more than a pile of ash and rubble. At one point, Mara had visited when the two isles were still intermixed, and back then, the fires tended to do a lot more harm than damage.


    Sighting an open space along the sea-side docks, Mara looked up to call out to the elf perched above, but Kali was already swinging from ballast to ballast as she trimmed the sails to cull their speed just as they slid up to the pier.


    ¡°Thanks Kali!¡±


    ¡°Not a problem Cap¡¯!¡±


    Rappelling down from her perch as they exchanged pleasantries, Kali returned Mara¡¯s grin before turning to their brown-haired captive.


    ¡°I suppose this is goodbye, huh?¡±


    Glancing between Mara and Rhuban, Kali didn¡¯t give either of them much room to answer the rhetorical question- She could read the room, but that didn¡¯t mean they had to be rude.


    ¡°It was only a few days but I enjoyed your company- The other two aren¡¯t the best conversationalists when it comes to food.¡±


    Sparing a moment to shoot the unyielding gullet known as Anvi a particular look, Kali noticed their fourth wasn¡¯t with them yet and turned back to Mara.


    ¡°I¡¯m gunna go check on the raven, he¡¯s probably still in his coop.¡±


    Acknowledging her intentions and dismissing her with a nod, Mara watched as Kali headed off to wake Jackle before turning back to the ever-guarded Rhuban, their eyes meeting as they exchanged intentions without words, until the latter was the first to crack.


    ¡°You¡¯re going to follow me regardless of what I do, aren¡¯t you?¡±


    Putting a finger to her lips in thought and looking off into the distance for a moment, Mara turned back to Rhuban with a somewhat dismissive nod.


    ¡°Mmhm. Unless you¡¯d like to skip the hullabaloo and introduce me directly, I¡¯m left without much of a choice. You¡¯re leverage and I don¡¯t intend to cut your strings until you play your role.¡±


    Glancing towards his ¡®retired¡¯ predecessor, Rhuban could see any edge he had was nil with a feather in her own cap to shadow his every step.


    Sighing, Rhuban turned back to Mara, his eyes full of hesitation, but rationally, he knew his only chance right now was the direct approach- If they had any chance of dealing with her, they needed to know she was coming, and cooperating might just buy him the head¡¯s start they needed, but he couldn¡¯t sell a complete one-eighty without some mock resistance to the idea on his part.


    ¡°Let¡¯s say I do intend to meet with an associate, and you were to join me, what are you intentions?¡±


    Unbuckling the waist-band holding her sheathed dagger, Mara held it up, then tossed it towards Anvi, who caught it without a word as she turned back to Rhuban.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know about you, but I think I¡¯m owed a reward of some kind, so let¡¯s just say I¡¯m pursuing compensation. I¡¯m not here for your or yours, but let me ask you this- Doesn¡¯t it strike you as strange that no one came looking for you?¡±


    Striking a chord with her words, Rhuban stared at Mara- He had, in fact, had that very same thought already, spawning an ever-gnawing concern that was still eating at his gut like coal burning its way through his insides.


    There was every chance that they¡¯d been compromised- His capture wasn¡¯t fault of his own, he¡¯d played his role perfectly, yet one morning he¡¯d been dragged from his bunk and strung up regardless. Perhaps it wasn¡¯t a bad idea to bring company.


    ¡°Fine. Her name¡¯s Lynn. She¡¯s a professor of applied mana at the academy- But I¡¯ll have to get a message to her so she can set up a meeting without raising suspicion.¡±


    ¡°Oh? Well isn¡¯t that just a happy coincidence. I think I¡¯ve got the perfect messenger bird in mind.¡±

 Ch 15 - Academia - Part 1

    Chapter 15


    <h2 style="text-align: center">Academia


    Part 1</h2>


    Flapping the small envelope against an open palm as he walked, mind absorbed in thought, the black robed archeologist-turned-mage strode through the familiar hallways of his prior haunt- The Mages Monastery.


    More specifically, his path had taken him from the guarded gates of the inner campus to the Tower of Dust- An ancient castle repurposed for archeologists, geologists, and any others that spent a good bit of their time outdoors, neck deep in the dirt.


    Unlike other fields, especially those beneficial to prospective adventures, his calling seldom had more than a handful of freshmen scattered throughout at any one time, so their facilities were relegated to what was of no use to the others.


    He¡¯d come back to the campus to deliver a letter to a particular professor in the Halls of Mana, but had detoured to drop by his office, if just for nostalgia alone.


    Glancing down at the wax-sealed letter their impromptu guest had written for Professor Joules, Jackle hadn¡¯t seen any harm in a minor change in plans, and if anything, it would make his presence on campus less suspicious rather than walking straight into a building he had no business being in.


    ¡°Professor Blutriten! What a surprise! My, what¡¯s it been, half a year now? I must introduce you to one of our newest students, Phillipa- She¡¯s proposed some interesting theories in regards to the great gears.¡±


    Quietly sighing to himself, Jackle recognized the voice and came to a halt, quickly chastised himself for running straight into the karma of his own actions, and pulled himself together to greet the thorn in his side he¡¯s had since he joined the faculty.


    ¡°Ahh, Professor Kemble, it¡¯s been too long. I trust your research into the land-bound cephalopods has been keeping you busy?¡±


    The pudgy gray-haired professor chuckled with his characteristic high-notes before replying in kind.


    ¡°You jest, but I¡¯ve heard rumors the church has been mounting evidence against your proposals on deep dwellers.¡±


    Rolling his eyes, Jackle knew Graegor was just trying to get under his skin, but he¡¯d already been expecting the pompous cloths to intervene regardless, half their literature was founded on the fear of that which hid from the light, and the other half championed superiority and victory to such fear. Proposing such a people could exist, let alone express intelligence, wasn¡¯t just heresy, it was a threat to their control.


    ¡°But! That is why I was hoping to introduce you to Ms. Charr, I think there might be some overlap in your research that could aid her theories, and in turn, assist in yours.¡±


    He hadn¡¯t particularly intended to get side-tracked, but perhaps some part of Jackle had been looking for it regardless, given the ambiguous urge to revisit his office.


    Turning to take a proper look at this ¡®Phillipa Charr¡¯, Jackle saw she stood a good head above her professor with a head of muddy blonde pulled up into a bun. Her features were fair, with a dash of forehead freckles above her thin-rimmed glasses.


    As with most of the students that attended here, she appeared predominately human, but her ears were a tinge on the pointy side- Likely a gift from a distance relative, and potentially coupled with other blessings that would grant her an edge above her colleagues.


    ¡°Phillipa Charr? Pleasure, I¡¯m Jackle Von Blutriten. I suppose I can spare a few minutes- If you can as well, would you like to join me in my office?¡±


    Sparing a quick glance to Graegor, Jackle ensured his intentions were clear- The invitation was for her, not him.


    ¡°Yes, of course! Mr. Kemble has shared many examples of your work with me, and I do think we might make some progress together, and potentially curtail the church¡¯s gaze from your work.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m certainly intrigued, your work is on the Great Gears? What do you have so far?¡±


    Gesturing to escort the young archeologist along to his office, Jackle gave his colleague a courteous nod, and received one in return as he began to walk Phillipa to his office while she briefed him on her thesis.


    ¡°Okay, so, obviously we¡¯ve collectively referred to abundant presence of subterranean gears in the under-rock as ¡®The Great Gears¡¯, along with lumping in the occasional gear-themed dungeon in with them, but I think they¡¯re more than disconnected relics of a bygone civilization.¡±This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.


    Pausing to point their way down a side hall on the third floor, Jackle looked at this girl with a bit more interest. It was one thing to propose an idea, but a good theory needed supporting evidence.


    ¡°An interesting train of thought, though if Graegor referred you, I presume you¡¯ve got more to go on that simple conjecture.¡±


    Raising her eyebrows, Jackle could see a gleam in her eyes like he¡¯d struck upon a gold mine of passion buried within.


    ¡°Oh, very much so. I¡¯ve been adventuring for about twenty years now and I¡¯ve managed to make a few of my own unofficial expeditions towards an itch of an idea I¡¯ve had for the better part of a decade.¡±


    Coming to a stop in front of a large wooden door at the end of a curved hallway with a half-flight of stairs in the middle of it, Jackle unhooked his keys from their belt-loop and slotted a large wrought-iron key into the equally large padlock mounted into the door.


    With a hefty turn counter-clockwise, followed by a half-circle turn clockwise, Jackle returned the key to its initial rotation, and extracted it, causing a shimmering illusion to disperse from the surface of the door- An alarming barrier, set to blare if its broken, and standard on all the offices, even in their ¡®derelict¡¯ postings.


    ¡°I thought you had a bit of the Elden Blood in those ears, but still clearly a combination- Come in, have a seat- If you don¡¯t mind me asking, do you know your potency?¡±


    Following Jackle into his office as he closed the door behind her, Phillipa took a seat in the left-hand lounge chair facing the intricately carved mahogany desk


    ¡°I¡¯ve not been tested if that¡¯s what you¡¯re asking, haven¡¯t particularly wanted to know myself, an exact figure on one¡¯s age is a little unnerving, but I know from my grandmothers side, I¡¯ve a few hundred years before I¡¯ll need to concern myself with the ailments of aging.¡±


    ¡°A blessing and a curse, I¡¯m sure. I apologize for prying, my curiosity gets the better of my tongue sometimes. Let¡¯s get back to your thesis- What have you discovered so far?¡±


    Taking a seat behind his desk, Jackle made himself comfortable as he settled in to hear Phillipa out, an opportunity she took full advantage of as she leaned forward in her own chair and dived head-first into retelling one of the first ventures to bear fruit.


    ¡°Eight years ago, we followed a string of tsunamis that hit a few island settlements in the middle sea. It was the fourth quake we¡¯d gotten a chance to investigate, so we triangulating it from the reports, at its epicenter, we found a Wild island with an entrance to the under-rock in a sea-side cave- Proverbial gold if my idea had any merit. See, I¡¯ve tried to break through the stone encasing the gears, I¡¯m sure you know the reports of prior attempts, and honestly, I could do no better, but I tried regardless. However, in my futile attempts, a thought struck me, if the best earth mages I could hire couldn¡¯t make a dent, perhaps an act of Somni might. So whenever we heard about a quake, we went looking for entrances to the subterranean, hoping we¡¯d find that which hadn¡¯t been seen before.¡±


    Leaning forward himself, Jackle could see where she was going with this, and his interest was most certainly piqued.


    ¡°I see the your intent- Is the island still around?¡±


    Nodding eagerly, Phillipa could see she¡¯d managed to get a hook into the stone-faced persona Professor Kemble had warned her of.


    ¡°Yeah, two-fifty Elva by eighty Aubroastrem. It¡¯s a rocky outcrop with only a few stubborn trees sprouting from the cracks like unkempt hair- The cave is on the side opposite Limeren, to small for more than a skip, but opens up inside.¡±


    Fishing his grimoire from within his robes, Jackle flipped it open to a blank page and jotted down the details before snapping the tome closed and gestured for the former-adventurer to continue telling her story, a request she was more than happy to oblige.


    ¡°Well, for what little hope I had for my idea, I was rewarded ten fold. The fault-line extended deep into the under-rock, dodging a few minor gears, but could not avoid one protruding from the floor and had cracked open a large chunk in the formerly-impenetrable casing stone, revealing a very dark abyss beneath it- An impressive vastness, but one far from empty. Gears upon gears stretched as far my light could reach, one upon one, connecting in web of mechanical streams of motion, sometimes spinning quickly, sometimes barely moving¡­ I¡¯m sorry, do you have water? I¡¯m a bit parched after talking all morning with Mr. Kemble, he¡¯s an inescapable chatterbox.¡±


    Nodding, Jackle stood up and made his way over to his liquor cabinet where he kept a capped crystal pitcher of ever-chilled water.


    ¡°I take it a bottomless pit held no chance of stopping your unwavering pursuit of apparent curiosity. What did you find inside?¡±


    Taking the proffered cup of chilled water and sipping it gently with both hands, Phillipa closed her eyes and let the refreshing feel wash over her for a moment before taking another sip and setting the cup down on the edge of the desk.


    ¡°Zero chance what-so-ever. We camped for the night while we brought down supplies from the ship, then rappelled in around mid-morning. However, we could not find a bottom before we encountered too many gears in our way, as the deeper we went, the larger they became, until the path of our descent was completely blocked and we had to step off onto one of them in the hopes of finding an edge to the light-less space.¡±


    Grabbing the glass and taking a much larger sip, draining nearly a third of the water at once, Phillipa set it down once more and wiped away a bit of excess water on her face with the back of her sleeve as she set the cup back on Jackle¡¯s desk.


    ¡°Traversing the house-sized gears like an obstacle course, the five of us made our way deep into the darkness, wander far, far away from the cheeky ingress we¡¯d discovered. However, only a few hours in, my ranger spotted a faint source of light above us, and with a bit of climbing, we found ourselves outside another portion of the under-rock, a hallway filled with barely-luminescent mushrooms, though the contents of the other side were trivial in comparison to the confirmation we¡¯d just stumbled upon. Following the train of gears back, we were able to verify that both protruding gears are connected.¡±


    Having sat back down in his chair already, Jackle almost slipped out of it as he realized what she¡¯d managed to find.


    ¡°That large of a space¡­ And connected between?¡­¡±


    Seeing Mr. Blutriten was coming to understand what she¡¯d stumbled upon, Phillipa eagerly jumped in to complete his sentences.


    ¡°Yeah, and it¡¯s not just those- I think this ¡®gear-void¡¯ runs through the entirety of the under-rock, but it¡¯s not just randomly placed gears, but an intentional structure, like a very-slow, but very-large clockwork mech.¡±